Her appointment, announced on January 15th, marks a new milestone in Sandra Kassab’s brilliant career and her established leadership. This professional, who combines strategic thinking with operational pragmatism, will now lead AFD’s ambitious strategy in the heart of the African continent. Sandra Kassab replaces the Congolese Christian Yoka, who has been appointed Minister of Finance, Budget, and Public Portfolio of the Republic of Congo (Brazzaville).
At the helm of this region, which represents 43% of AFD’s global volume, Sandra Kassab will orchestrate a variety of ambitious projects across 44 countries in a continent undergoing rapid transformation.
This new role is the pinnacle of a decade of expertise at AFD, where she has worked across five continents, exploring diverse terrains such as Dominican infrastructure, Egyptian energy challenges, and governance issues in the Central African Republic.
Before taking charge of the Africa Department, she served as Deputy Director of the Orient Department from August 2022, within the Executive Geographies Division of AFD, after spending eight years abroad. From 2018 to 2022, she was the Director of AFD in the Dominican Republic, where she transformed local socio-economic realities with meaningful, concrete projects. From 2014 to 2018, she was in charge of projects at the Cairo agency, overseeing major initiatives in energy, banking, finance, and health—an ideal ground for her expertise in human development.
A Rich International Career
Before joining AFD in 2006, Sandra Kassab honed her strategic and analytical vision at prestigious international institutions such as the World Bank in Haiti, the African Development Bank in Tunisia, and the French Treasury. These experiences gave her mastery of the financial, social, and geopolitical challenges of high-risk areas and countries in transition. As a consultant at the World Bank in Port-au-Prince from December 2005 to May 2006, she supported the redesign of the institution’s strategy for Haiti. As a junior project officer at the African Development Bank’s Finance Department in Tunisia, she worked on the establishment of financial tools for post-conflict countries.
Holder of a DEA in Public International Law from the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and a Magistère in International Relations from the University of Paris-Sorbonne, Sandra Kassab combines legal rigor with a deep understanding of international political relations.
She is also the author of several articles and a speaker at seminars on sustainable development.
