The 2021 Africa Infrastructure Webinar Series

Date: 22nd April 2021, 1530 hrs. ( EAT)

The collapse and postponement of Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) infrastructure projects during the Covid-19 pandemic has exposed the fragility of the PPP framework as a means to procure and deliver sustainable infrastructure projects across the globe.

The fact that the pandemic has rendered a majority of the projects that were initially listed in the PPP project pipelines untenable is a clear indication that there is need to better prepare projects that are resilient and can adapt to disruptions in the market.

According to the Benchmarking infrastructure development 2020 report by the World Bank, as much as significant progress has been recorded, project preparation is an area which still needs improvement especially for the low-income economies.

As we navigate through the Covid-19 pandemic, tackling the growing infrastructure financing gap will require prioritized project pipelines and well prepared, bankable projects. This will not only require review of the entire project pipelines but commitment from top government organs to ensure PPPs are delivered successfully.

Governments (both national and sub-national) need to redefine the project preparation process that provides agility and adaptation to changes in the environment surrounding the delivery of infrastructure projects.

Key discussion points:

1. What key aspects of PPP projects that were exposed and impacted as a result of Covid-19?
2. What primary areas of the project preparation process should be redefined?
3. How can governments identify priority infrastructure projects that can attract sustainable financing during and post Covid-19 pandemic?
4. Should governments review the project pipelines? What should governments take into consideration when reviewing project pipelines?
5. How can governments align the PPP regulatory framework to be more of an enabler than a gatekeeper for PPP projects?
6. How can governments enhance feasibility studies for PPP projects?
7. How can governments efficiently structure projects to ensure they attract private financing during and after the pandemic?
8. How can governments build the requisite capacity to efficiently structure sustainable infrastructure projects?
9. How can governments leverage technology to improve the preparation, procurement and award of PPP projects?