Horton, A. Romeo, 1923-2005

Alexander Romeo Horton was born in 1923 in Monrovia, Liberia . As a child Horton moved to Virginia, Liberia to pursue his education at the Ricks Institute. He later attended Booker Washington Institute, where he graduated from the eighth grade in 1937 . After completing high school at College of West Africa in the 1940s, Horton entered Morehouse College in Atlanta, his father’s alma mater. He then began the Business and Finance Masters program at University of Pennsylvania .

Horton is best known for founding and presiding over the Bank of Liberia, the country’s first indigenous banking institution. He later served on the development board that created the African Development Bank (ADB) and the ECOWAS Fund (Economic Community of West African States), a subsidiary of ADB . In the beginning stages of the ECOWAS, Horton served as the managing director, relocating to Togo . Horton held the position of chairman on the ADB board, travelling to visit almost all African Heads of State and many western leaders, presenting African Development ideas. Liberia became a key figure in the establishment of the ADB due to Horton's efforts.

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