AFRICA, Sept. 14 -- THE African Development Bank (AfDB) has unveiled a financing response of up to 5.1 billion US dollars to help African countries absorb the economic impact of rising energy and fertiliser prices amid an intensifying global supply shock.

The Banks Board of Directors approved the Global Energy and Fertilizer Crisis Response Framework (GEFCRF) recently, creating a temporary financing mechanism aimed at providing rapid support to countries facing higher import costs, supply disruptions and growing pressure on food and energy security.

The initiative comes as renewed instability in the Middle East continues to reverberate through global commodity markets, exposing African economies to higher prices for fuel, fertilisers, f...