IMF  [to 15 March 2014]
http://www.imf.org/external/index.htm

March 13, 2014
IMF Conference Highlights Central Africa’s Investment Needs in Infrastructure
Press Release No. 14/95
March 13, 2014
The Government of Cameroon and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) jointly organized a high-level conference entitled “Financing the Future: Infrastructure Development in Central Africa” in Yaoundé, Cameroon on March 10, 2014

The conference brought together ministers, governors and more than 250 senior officials, academics, and representatives of financial institutions and civil society from across countries of the Economic Community of Central African States and beyond to discuss international experience and best practices to finance infrastructure development. The outcome of this conference will be presented at the high level Africa Rising conference organized by the government of Mozambique and the IMF in Maputo on May 29-30, 2014.

Participants agreed that investment in infrastructure can drive growth, raise productivity, and help reduce poverty, but also acknowledged that large infrastructure gaps remain in central Africa. The lack of infrastructure is a key obstacle to achieving faster growth because higher transportation, water, and power costs are estimated to reduce private sector productivity by almost half. Regional infrastructure projects and good coordination of national investment will  also foster regional integration.

Upgrading infrastructures is, however, very costly and implies large financing needs. For Central African countries, scaling up investment without taking on excessive debt constitutes a crucial policy challenge…