Public Private Partnerships experts representing Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Mali, Senegal, Togo, Uganda, Congo, Mauritius and Kenya are participating in training on the legal, contractual and financial aspects of PPP projects in the energy sector. The five-day training will be held, from January 11-15, 2016 at the Centre d'études financières, économiques et bancaires (CEFEB) headquarters in Marseille, France.
"The PPP experts attending the training focused on the energy sector are expected to learn from each other and exchange lessons learnt from their individual countries. Most African countries need to explore innovative ways to attract much-needed investments to fast-track universal access to power. The debate is not about the level of investment required to meet the energy demand in Africa, but rather how do we get parties to understand and minimise risk for the respective parties in a negotiation. Building investor confidence in African markets is critical," said Maude Vallée, Principal Legal Counsel at the African Legal Support Facility (ALSF).
Vallée added that the PPP model offers an alternative means through which African governments can mobilise resources for the energy sector. To achieve this end, we need to equip the experts with the appropriate skills.
The training component focusing on the energy sector forms part of the three-year training programme which is a joint collaborative effort between the ALSF, Agence Française de Développement (AFD) through its corporate university, CEFEB, and Expertise France.
The programme seeks to strengthen the capacity of the African Development Bank's regional member countries so that they are able to identify, prepare, develop and negotiate bankable PPP projects.
About the African Legal Support Facility
The ALSF, hosted by the African Development Bank Group is an international organization dedicated solely to providing legal advice and technical assistance to African countries. To that end, the ALSF's long-term goal is to ensure that African governments have the legal capacity to negotiate and conclude equitable and sustainable agreements that deliver maximum economic value to African countries and protect their sovereign rights.
About Expertise France
Expertise France is the French international technical expertise agency. The aim of the agency is to increase the mobilization capacities of the various areas of public technical expertise in the international arena in order to better respond to the growing needs of developing or emergent countries in terms of assistance to public policies.
About CEFEB
The CEFEB, the Centre for Financial, Economic and Banking Studies offers professional training and skills building programs for AFD's aid beneficiaries, employees and partners. As a centre for sharing experiences and knowledge, CEFEB adds value to professional education courses by crossing the boundary between theoretical research and operational practices proven in the field.
