Photo by: Bloomberg
African leaders are working together on major infrastructure projects on the continent, helped by business and political leaders, including former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
The World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Strategic Infrastructure Initiative (ASII) hopes to draw billions of dollars to boost infrastructure projects in Africa.
“Africa has a $100-billion-a-year infrastructure gap. It needs to spend $1.5-trillion in the next 15 years to provide water, electricity, sanitation, roads, rail and economic growth necessary for 80-million young people in Africa to get jobs every year,” Brown told a media briefing
ASII has identified a need to get projects to a stage where they are bankable.
Much-needed infrastructure projects often struggle to progress beyond the concept stage as project preparation is costly, lengthy, complex and risky.
“Without sufficient funds to pay for high-quality project preparation, projects rarely get off the ground enough to reach tender, let alone implementation,” said the ASII report.
Through the ASII, the WEF has identified a new approach based on best practices observed globally, clear objectives and a focused strategy, together with a self-sustainable finance model.
The initiative has given guidance and support by establishing a best practice framework for improved infrastructure delivery in Africa. It also enables governments to benefit from objective, transparent and informed inputs from the private sector.
Development Bank of Southern Africa CEO Patrick Dlamini said the progress the initiative had made had been remarkable. There were now serious discussions on a Central Corridor project which links five countries around Tanzania in a range of infrastructure programmes. Five heads of State meet every quarter to discuss progress.
“The projects are ready for investors. “We are sending the message out that Africa is ready for projects to be financed by international investors. We are at the start of an investment decade that will solve the infrastructure gap,” said Brown.
The African Union Commission has a Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa. It comprises a pipeline of 51 megaprogrammes within the water, energy, information and communications technology and transport sectors, with an estimated investment value of $75-billion up to 2040. It aims to enhance regional economic integration across the continent.
“It’s very important for Africa to successfully address the infrastructure deficit. There needs to be a lot of coordination, trust between the official sector, governments, developers, financial institutions and organs of civil society,” said Standard Bank CEO Sim Tshabalala.