Subscribe
AEC Quarterly
No Result
View All Result
  • Big Story
  • Opinion
  • Energy
  • Interviews
  • Africa
  • Investment
  • Big Story
  • Opinion
  • Energy
  • Interviews
  • Africa
  • Investment
No Result
View All Result
AEC Quarterly
No Result
View All Result

African Union to Set up Infrastructure Fund for the Continent

Reuters

2 years ago
Reading Time: 2 mins read
African Union to Set up Infrastructure Fund for the Continent

Raila Odinga, Kenya's former Prime Minister and the African Union (AU) High Representative for Infrastructure Development in Africa

The African Union is setting up a fund to finance the construction of much-needed roads, railways and power plants on the continent, its infrastructure head said, turning to new sources of cash due to donor fatigue and higher debt levels.

The continent has an estimated annual infrastructure financing deficit of $60 billion-$90 billion, the AU says, making it hard for the body to advance its goal of integrating the disparate individual markets into a single, free trade area.

“Africa is financially starved as far as the need for infrastructure development is concerned,” Raila Odinga, who is the AU’s high representative for infrastructure, told Reuters.

Related articles

Cholera Outbreak hits 23 states in Nigeria

Guinean President Alpha Condé deposed in military coup

The 55-nation AU is now turning to sovereign wealth funds, insurance, and retirement funds in countries like South Africa, Angola, Nigeria Morocco, Egypt, and Kenya, to raise the cash.

The funds will be invited to invest about 5% of their holdings, Odinga said, “which is actually going to be more lucrative for those institutions, rather than having funds lie idle”.

Talks with the funds are going on and the AU’s experts are setting up the legal and financial structure for the infrastructure fund, which will be administered by the newly formed African Union Development Agency, Odinga said.

The move bucks the past trend of dependence on wealthy donor nations and borrowing from financial markets.

China, which has been one of the biggest funders of infrastructure projects on the continent over the past decade, has cut back on lending due to high debt levels among individual nations like Kenya.

“We are now trying to think out of the box,” Odinga said.

The drive to find new ways of funding the construction of roads and railways and other utilities comes as Africa seeks to bring together 1.3 billion people in a $3.4 trillion economic bloc known as the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

“This infrastructure is urgent for the realization of the AfCFTA, otherwise it is just going to remain on paper,” Odinga said.

It was critical to connect landlocked nations to ports on coastlines, and complete missing links for transcontinental highways, to facilitate the free flow of goods under the AfCFTA and lift people out of poverty, he said.

“Africa needs to trade with itself,” Odinga said, citing figures which show intra-African trade is just 15%, compared with intra-European trade levels of 70% and 50% in Asia.

Source: aecquarterly
Tags: AfCFTAAfrican Union to Set up Infrastructure Fund for the ContinentAURaila Odinga
Share122Tweet77Share31
Previous Post

Russia offers 300 million doses of its Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine to Africa – AU

Next Post

Insecurity: Nigeria-Benin partners against smuggling and other trans-border crime

Related Posts

cholera outbreak in Nigeria
Africa

Cholera Outbreak hits 23 states in Nigeria

September 7, 2021
President Alpha Condé
Africa

Guinean President Alpha Condé deposed in military coup

September 6, 2021
First malaria vaccine rollout commences in Africa
Africa

Groundbreaking Malaria Vaccine is ready for use

September 3, 2021
Zamfara kidnapping crisis
Latest News

Zamfara shuts down schools completely after mass abduction of students

September 3, 2021
Vaccination in Uganda
Covid-19

State of COVID-19 in Uganda

August 30, 2021
South Sudan President and rival
Africa

South Sudan Leaders propose merge of Rival Armed Forces

August 30, 2021

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Popular Post

  • 5 Young African Entrepreneurs to look out for in 2021

    5 Young African Entrepreneurs to look out for in 2021

    317 shares
    Share 127 Tweet 79
  • Meet Cira-O3, Egypt’s COVID-19 Robot Nurse

    313 shares
    Share 125 Tweet 78
  • Winning in the African Oil and Gas Industry

    312 shares
    Share 125 Tweet 78
  • Africa claims Top 3 spots for the Highest Concentration of Women Entrepreneurs in the World

    312 shares
    Share 125 Tweet 78
  • Assessing Africa’s Digital Response Strategy to COVID-19

    311 shares
    Share 124 Tweet 78

Recommended

Outrage Over Kidnap Of Nurses In Kaduna Hospital – LEADERSHIP

Outrage Over Kidnap Of Nurses In Kaduna Hospital – LEADERSHIP

April 23, 2021
Nigeria’s unemployment crisis amidst the Covid-10 pandemic

Nigeria’s unemployment crisis amidst the Covid-10 pandemic

December 5, 2020

Sign Up For AEC Quarterly Newsletter

Get our most compelling stories delivered straight to your inbox.

AEC Quarterly

AEC Quarterly is a great read for investors looking for new opportunities with articles and reports exploring growth, creativity and entrepreneurial spirit.

  • Big Story
  • Africa
  • Opinion
  • Energy
  • Finance
  • Interviews
  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Get Featured in AEC Quarterly Magazine

© 2020 AEC Quarterly. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our, Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

No Result
View All Result
  • Big Story
  • Opinion
  • Energy
  • Interviews
  • Africa
  • Investment

© 2023 JNews - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Jegtheme.

Go to mobile version