Infrastructure is the cornerstone of the African economy and it is crucial for African governments to step up their investment in this sector if poverty is to be eliminated in Africa.  Africa has undergone fundamental changes over the last decade which in turn has fuelled demand for infrastructure services including energy, transportation, ICT, water supply, growing agriculture and urban infrastructure.

Policy Makers, leading experts and investors in Infrastructure debated and championed delivery of Africa’s critical infrastructure requirements, while providing expert advice on the current state of infrastructure and the anticipated impact of future development at the Infrastructure Africa 2013.

The 2 day summit, which will run until 17 July, provided a platform for informative and interactive sessions with the prime movers of Infrastructure; enhance policy to boost investor confidence, as well as encourage private-public partnerships in the process of developing world class infrastructure.

“For a regional or continental infrastructure project to be successfully implemented, it requires strategic focus with a framework that includes an investment program, priority action plan, implementation strategies, and most importantly, it should be based on the sector priorities of the affected RECs and the foot print states, and in my opinion only Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa offers the best chance of achieving all these” said Dr John Tambi, Transport Infrastructure Expert and Coordinator at the NEPAD Agency.

PIDA is a joint initiative of the African Union, NEPAD and African Development Bank (AfDB), aimed at tackling the Continent’s infrastructural gap.  Its core objective is to ensure that regional projects and programmes can address the infrastructural challenge that continues to undermine Africa’s competitiveness in the global market.

It also presents a framework for building the much needed infrastructure necessary for energy, ICT, integrated transport and trans-boundary water networks to boost Intra-African trade and stimulate growth.

“Africa is stronger when united, Intra-African trade must grow!” said South African Public Enterprises Minister, Malusi Gigaba.  The minister praised NEPAD in recognising the need of its people in establishing PIDA.

Delegates made emphasis on the need for more information on Infrastructure priority projects, their progress and investment opportunities on the newly launched Virtual PIDA Information Centre (VPIC), which is a web portal that promotes investment opportunities in PIDA projects by bringing governments, regional economic communities, domestic investors and foreign investors together.

Closing the infrastructure deficit is thus vital for economic prosperity and sustainable development, much of the responsibility for the provision of infrastructure lies with governments and the private sector to transform the public sector’s dreams to reality.