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Friends, family and development players from global, regional and national institutions paid tribute to Abdoulaye Touré, one of Africa's leading champions of agricultural research and development.

Abdoulaye Touré died on June 16, 2019, while serving as senior agricultural economist and team leader of the West African Agricultural Productivity Program (WAAPP), one of the World Bank's largest investments in Africa.

At a ceremony in his honor held on November 20, 2019 at the World Bank office in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, colleagues, friends and family unequivocally praised his tireless commitment to lifting people out of poverty.

"The only regional program that works."

Many development specialists join the charitable sector to make a difference in the fight against poverty, or to solve some of the intractable problems that prevent countries from achieving equitable growth.

Abdoulaye Touré has spent the last decade at the World Bank working on the West African Agricultural Productivity Program (WAAPP). The program's innovative approach to generating and disseminating innovations has not only lifted millions out of poverty, but also improved the livelihoods of poor farmers in the fields of West Africa.

In all, nine million people have benefited directly from the WAPP, and around 56 million indirectly, according to current project data.

The PPAAO has generated over 230 technologies that have led to a significant increase in agricultural yields (30% for dry cereals and 150% for rice, fruits and tubers).

Some 1,000 students have obtained post-graduate certificates thanks to this program, and are now helping to advance the research agenda of their respective countries and those of West Africa.

"The WAPP is the only World Bank program that works," said Matien Van Nieuwkoop, Senior Director of Global Agriculture and Food Practices at the World Bank.

The WAPP was launched by ECOWAS in 2008 to make agriculture more productive, sustainable and profitable for small-scale farmers.

"Many young people and millions of people have benefited from Abdoulaye Touré's generosity," said the Commissioner for Agriculture, Environment and Water Resources of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), His Excellency Sekou Sangare.

Abdoulaye Touré was a citizen of the world in the sense that he worked in many West African countries, at the headquarters of the International Fund for Agricultural Development and at World Bank headquarters in Washington, but he was originally from Côte d'Ivoire.

"Abdoulaye Touré was a champion and a fervent defender of farmers. He loved farmers," said Dr Pierre Ackah Angniman, his friend for nearly 37 years and currently special advisor to the Prime Minister of Côte d'Ivoire.

Will we ever forget it?

One of the people who knew Touré up close was Siméon Ehui, the World Bank's current Regional Director for Sustainable Development in Africa.

"Touré's death has created a huge void. He remains in our minds, and I wonder if we'll ever forget him," wonders Siméon Ehui.

Ehui praised Touré's kindness, magnanimity and tolerance. Abdoulaye Touré was a practicing Muslim. But he would not hesitate to invite friends of Christian origin to visit sacred Muslim places of worship.

One of those who benefited from such an invitation was the World Bank senior official. Once on assignment at the Islamic Development Bank's headquarters in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Touré invited Ehui to visit Mecca, the holy land of Muslims. Ehui saw in this gesture an extraordinary spirit of tolerance.

Personal and professional qualities

Visionary, humility, integrity, passion, generosity, kindness, compassion, exemplarity, tolerance, etc. are just some of the adjectives used to describe Touré's personal and professional conduct.

"Abdoulaye Touré has been very generous with his knowledge and experience. Not only did he mentor younger employees, but he also contributed to improving the working environment at the World Bank. This is a great loss for the World Bank", said Ousmane Diagana, Vice President Human Resources at the World Bank.

Gone but the values endure

In a moving and uplifting testimony, his wife, Mrs Awah Touré, recalled a time when her husband devoted his daily prayers entirely to imploring Almighty God to bless the people of northern Côte d'Ivoire with rain.

"He would wake me up early in the morning to pray for rain so the farmers could have high yields," said Mrs Awah Touré of the time they both lived in Korogho, in the north of Côte d'Ivoire.

"Although he is not with us, we are comforted that his values have been passed on to many people. We're comforted because he touched a lot of people."

Supporting Abdoulaye Touré's lifelong service to the poor

Abdoulaye Touré died while working on a new World Bank project. The West African Agricultural Transformation Program was envisaged to take over the infrastructure developed by the WAPP to accelerate technology adoption. Many wondered what would become of the program.

"We can assure you that the World Bank will continue to focus on food security issues, not only because it's essential, but also because it's a way of supporting Abdoulaye's work," said Havez Ghanem, World Bank Vice President for the Africa region.

Ghanem praised his exemplary qualities and astute professional skills, and promised to strengthen his work on behalf of those most in need.

Aware of the need to accelerate technology adoption, the World Bank is currently considering the implementation of a new program that will build on the WAPP infrastructure and focus on strengthening the resilience of populations and communities in the face of climate change.