Financing and Managing Infrastructure in Africa

This paper discusses various ways of financing infrastructure under public private partnership (PPP) arrangements in Africa. The paper presents the standard literature on the relationship between infrastructure investment and economic growth, highlighting the contradictory findings in the literature. Stylised facts about the state of infrastructure in Africa, compared with other regions such as Asia and Latin America, are also presented. Examples of how PPPs structures work are discussed including the build-operate-transfer, build-own-operate-transfer, build-own-operate and other arrangements. We also discuss various ways for funding housing in Africa. Examples of specific toll roads and hospitals in South Africa are provided. The paper draws some policy conclusions.