Themes

From this page, you will be able to learn about the AICD's key findings related to specific themes or cross-country issues that are relevant across countries and sectors. These include spending needs, spending patterns, efficiency measures, funding gaps, poverty and inequality, institutional reform, spatial development and regional integration.

Growth Linkages

Africa trails other regions in infrastructure, and that deficit suppresses growth and productivity. If Sub-Saharan Africa could achieve the infrastructure development of Mauritius, annual GDP growth in the region would rise by 2.3 percentage points.

Spending Needs

Africa needs $93 billion per year to build the infrastructure it needs to support growth and meet stated development goals. Two-thirds of that sum is for investments; the remaining third, for maintenance.

Spending Patterns

Africa spends $45 billion a year on infrastructure, two-thirds of which is domestically financed from taxes and user charges. Most financing for capital investment is obtained from external sources.

Efficiency Gap

Overstaffing of utilities, distribution losses, undercollection of revenue, and poor maintenance add up to large inefficiencies. Improvements could cut annual infrastructure spending requirements by $17 billion.

Funding Gap

Efficiency gains, even if fully realized, will not be enough to provide all of the funding needed to meet Africa’s infrastructure needs. Low-cost technologies offer alternative ways of meeting infrastructure targets.

Poverty and Inequality

Modern infrastructure services provide vital economic and social benefits. But in Africa the expansion of coverage has stalled and remains skewed in favor of richer households. Universal access to modern services is 50 years away in most countries.

Institutional Reform

New roads, power plants, and irrigation systems will not yield lasting results without the right institutions and regulations. Sound sector policies, effective regulation, and greater competition are needed to ease Africa’s infrastructure constraints.

Urbanization

Africa is rapidly urbanizing, but urban infrastructure has not kept up. Roads are choked, power is unreliable, and sanitation is poor. A big part of the solution lies in better urban-rural linkages.

Regional Integration

Africa’s fragmentary infrastructure networks isolate smaller countries and prevent them from harnessing efficient large-scale technologies. Regional integration is essential to reducing Africa’s high infrastructure costs.

Primary Links

Themes