Public Management

Infrastructure Symposium “is laying a path for South Africa after coronavirus, but also way into the future.” - President Ramaphosa

Infrastructure Symposium “is laying a path for South Africa after coronavirus, but also way into the future.” - President Ramaphosa
Tuesday, 23 June 2020 21:19

South African President and African Union Chairperson, Cyril Ramaphosa today hosted a historic conference to spur infrastructure investment in his country and inspire similar efforts in the rest of the continent. “South Africa, within the AU family, has been given responsibility for championing infrastructure development. It is through these objectives we will be able to attain the objectives and aspirations we have set out in Agenda 2063. This is truly a historic moment for South Africa, the continent and the world.”

President Ramaphosa made these remarks in his opening keynote address at the inaugural Sustainable Infrastructure Development Symposium of South Africa (SIDSSA) to discuss the government’s revised Infrastructure Investment Plan – a public-private initiative to accelerate major built projects.

The coronavirus pandemic will likely lead to the deepest global recession in the post-World War II era, possibly as deep as the Great Depression in the 1930s. This symposium is laying a path for South Africa after coronavirus, but also way into the future,” Ramaphosa said. “It represents a new beginning for infrastructure development – a new beginning that promises inclusive growth, development, transformation and, above all, hope for a better tomorrow for all our people.”

Over 681 delegates from 263 funding institutions across the globe attended the symposium, including African Development Bank President Akinwumi Adesina, AU Commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy, Amani Abou-Zeid, and World Bank Vice-President for Infrastructure, Makhtar Diop. “We at the Bank are boldly bullish about South Africa. We need to continue to invest in critical areas, and energy is a big one. We have invested $3.1 billion in the energy sector,” Adesina said.

Adesina insisted on the need to invest in a way that was environmentally sustainable and commended the government of South Africa for its efforts on the renewable energy front.

The African Development Bank has invested in a number of these areas, including the 100 MW Sere wind project connected to the national grid and the 100 MW Xina solar energy project.

As at 20 June 2020, the Bank’s total portfolio in South Africa comprised 21 operations valued at $4.74 billion. About 75% of the portfolio is in the infrastructure sector, mainly through loans to state-owned enterprises, Eskom and Transnet. The current portfolio includes 16 private sector operations, valued at around $2.93 billion.

President Adesina underscored the need to promote syndication. The Bank has channeled $1.3 billion in syndicated loans for South Africa to provide capital for the energy utility, Eskom, to invest in power transmission infrastructure.

Infrastructure tends to be concentrated in urban areas, the Bank’s President noted. “The rural areas are left out. So we need to make sure that we have density infrastructure in rural areas and allow food and agribusinesses to transpose into those areas, and create…a new economy, so that will turn those rural areas from being zones of economic misery into zones of economic prosperity.”

The symposium follows weeks of consultations to garner support for the revised Infrastructure Investment Plan. President Ramaphosa said the plan had preceded the coronavirus pandemic, but was now even more urgent.

In her welcome remarks to the Presidential Round Table Discussion, South Africa’s Minister of Public Works, Patricia de Lille, called for “less talk and more action”.

The SIDSSA projects that will be gazetted after the symposium have been selected from an initial 177 that were subjected to a due diligence process.

24968 in Agency agrf jennifer blanke agrf afdb copy copy copy

Additional Info

  • communiques: Non
  • couleur: N/A
On the same topic
Côte d’Ivoire will receive $234 million for a sustainable urban mobility project in Abidjan. Gambia will receive $32.2 million to build...
Stanbic IBTC and Zenith Bank cut monthly card spending abroad to $500 and $200 Foreign reserves fall by $3.5 billion in six...
Cauri Money launches Gajo Money, an e-wallet for the Cameroonian diaspora, targeting €120 million in transactions by end-2025. The fintech...
• Kenya and ASR sign deal to reduce risk on projects worth up to $2 billion.• Risk cover will target infrastructure, energy, logistics, and trade...
Most Read
01

• Investors seem to keep focusing on yields, which are high for the moment• New Leadership might see...

Afreximbank Bonds Retain Market Confidence Despite Moody’s Downgrade
02

• ECOWAS Bank funds 47.7-km stretch of strategic 700-km road project• Lagos-Calabar highway seen boo...

Nigeria Secures $100 mln ECOWAS Bank Loan for Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway
03

• Algeria grants commercial 5G licenses to top three telecom operators: Mobilis, Djezzy, and Ooredoo...

Algeria Awards Commercial 5G Licenses
04

• IFC teams up with AfDB and Nigeria’s EbonyLife to assess a new fund for African cinema• Sector cou...

IFC Plans Investment Fund to Help Grow African Film Industry
05

• Global coffee consumption projected to hit a record 169.4 million 60-kg bags in 2025/2026, up from...

Coffee: Global Consumption Expected to Reach Record Level in 2025/2026
Enter your email to receive our newsletter

Ecofin Agency provides daily coverage of nine key African economic sectors: public management, finance, telecoms, agribusiness, mining, energy, transport, communication, and education.
It also designs and manages specialized media, both online and print, for African institutions and publishers.

SALES & ADVERTISING

regie@agenceecofin.com 
Tél: +41 22 301 96 11 
Mob: +41 78 699 13 72
Média kit : Download

EDITORIAL
redaction@agenceecofin.com

More information
Team
Publisher

ECOFIN AGENCY

Mediamania Sarl
Rue du Léman, 6
1201 Geneva
Switzerland

 

Ecofin Agency is a sector-focused economic news agency, founded in December 2010. Its web platform was launched in June 2011. ©Mediamania.

 
 

Please publish modules in offcanvas position.