UN ECA seeks robust Public-Private-Partnerships to strengthen financial sector in Africa

Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, Vera Songwe recently stressed the requirement to establish strong Public-Private-Partnership for strengthening Africa's financial sector.

The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa's Chief stressed that "the landscape of PPPs is not well defined and there is much work needed for both the public and private sector to understand the merits of P Public-Private-Partnerships (PPPs). They must be defined accurately, and used well," the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) statement quoted Songwe as saying on May 9.

"Neither the private, nor the public sectors can finance development alone. There is need to understand blended financing and new asset classes as we the address tensions within PPPs, which involve multiple coalitions, in order to fully maximize their usability in critical areas, including water and sanitation," Songwe opined.

Songwe also stressed that there are success cases on the continent regarding public-private sector partnership. "In the energy sector, PPPs have been done well and right. This now provides an opportunity for the private sector to replicate similar projects, based on lessons learned," she said, as reported by Xinhua.

Songwe also said the need for stability of PPP contracts and reasonable allocation of risks are the two major lessons over the years. "Currently, risks in PPP projects tend to be heavily skewed towards the public sector," Songwe said. "This imbalance needs to change with risks being adequately allocated between the two sectors, she said.

According to Songwe, ECA has set up the Private Sector and Finance Division, part of whose work is to support member countries in implementing PPPs. "The Commission is encouraging countries to implement at least one or two PPPs, experience of which would provide them with knowledge and information on proof of concept before standardizing them," the ECA chief said, Xinhua noted.

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