Saudi Arabia announced on Thursday the appointment of Shaima Ragaban as Saudi Arabia’s Alternate Executive Director at the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) and the African Development Fund. This makes Ragaban the first Saudi woman to hold this important international position.

Ragaban is a financial expert and accountant with over nine years of experience in infrastructure financing, financial accounting, tax accounting, and international affairs. During her career at the Saudi Ministry of Finance, she has led efforts related to various international forums and new emerging global financial activities.

She served as head of the International Financial Institutions Department at the ministry since August 2021. Ragaban assumed the position of Senior Policy Advisor to the G20 Infrastructure Working Group in the finance track under the G20 Saudi Presidency, working with her G20 counterparts, multilateral development banks, and international institutions to develop policy recommendations and priorities.

The African Development Bank Group is a multilateral development financing institution established to contribute to economic development and social progress in African countries. It aims to combat poverty and improve living conditions on the continent by encouraging the investment of public and private capital in projects and programs that are likely to contribute to the economic and social development of the region. — SG