New Report Excoriates Africa’s Infrastructure Investments
10 Dec 2015
John Iwori with agencies reports
A new report by United Arab Emirate (UAE)-based port operations and logistics giant, DP World, has flayed the low amount of money invested in infrastructure in the African continent.
To address the problem, the firm has called for more investment in “soft’ and ‘hard’ infrastructure in sub-Saharan Africa.
DP World’s report, which was prepared by the Economist Intelligence Unit and presented at the Africa Global Business Forum, said that infrastructure development in sub-Saharan Africa has slowed since 2009. According to the report, in South-east Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean on the other hand, infrastructure development has continued to catch up with advanced economies.
The report added: “Africa’s port infrastructure is poor quality.
Processing times for cargo are long. This is also applicable to turnaround times, and only Durban plays a significant role in international shipping. It noted that between 1996 and 2011, time efficiency for the processing of containers in ports deteriorated across Sub-Saharan Africa.”
However, the report pointed out that unlike in broader infrastructure trends, Africa is not alone in experiencing deteriorating efficiency at its ports, saying Latin America (excluding Brazil and Mexico) and the Philippines have experienced similar trends.
The report said that the Kenyan port of Mombasa “has huge potential for the East Africa region and a rehabilitation programme is under way” to improve it.
It added that Nigeria’s busiest port, Apapa Quay remains hindered by “weak surrounding road infrastructure”, although efficiency has somewhat improved at the port.
“Road quality and quantity is a problem across Africa, as there are insufficient paved and cross-border roads,” it said.
It noted that railways connecting rural areas with export points are also lacking and railways often have different gauges, as they were built by different colonising nations.
The report also called for improvements in ‘soft infrastructure’, the legal and regulatory frameworks that enable physical infrastructure to be developed and maintained.
It said low levels of intra-African trade are partially the result of non-tariff trade barriers, including slow and erratic customs processes, corruption, and mismanagement at borders and ports.
The World Economic Forum’s 2015 survey of investors indicated that “inadequate supply of infrastructure” was considered the third biggest obstacle to doing business in Africa, after “access to finance” and “corruption.”
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| Egyptian Suez Canal. |
John Iwori with agencies reports
A new report by United Arab Emirate (UAE)-based port operations and logistics giant, DP World, has flayed the low amount of money invested in infrastructure in the African continent.
To address the problem, the firm has called for more investment in “soft’ and ‘hard’ infrastructure in sub-Saharan Africa.
DP World’s report, which was prepared by the Economist Intelligence Unit and presented at the Africa Global Business Forum, said that infrastructure development in sub-Saharan Africa has slowed since 2009. According to the report, in South-east Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean on the other hand, infrastructure development has continued to catch up with advanced economies.
The report added: “Africa’s port infrastructure is poor quality.
Processing times for cargo are long. This is also applicable to turnaround times, and only Durban plays a significant role in international shipping. It noted that between 1996 and 2011, time efficiency for the processing of containers in ports deteriorated across Sub-Saharan Africa.”
However, the report pointed out that unlike in broader infrastructure trends, Africa is not alone in experiencing deteriorating efficiency at its ports, saying Latin America (excluding Brazil and Mexico) and the Philippines have experienced similar trends.
The report said that the Kenyan port of Mombasa “has huge potential for the East Africa region and a rehabilitation programme is under way” to improve it.
It added that Nigeria’s busiest port, Apapa Quay remains hindered by “weak surrounding road infrastructure”, although efficiency has somewhat improved at the port.
“Road quality and quantity is a problem across Africa, as there are insufficient paved and cross-border roads,” it said.
It noted that railways connecting rural areas with export points are also lacking and railways often have different gauges, as they were built by different colonising nations.
The report also called for improvements in ‘soft infrastructure’, the legal and regulatory frameworks that enable physical infrastructure to be developed and maintained.
It said low levels of intra-African trade are partially the result of non-tariff trade barriers, including slow and erratic customs processes, corruption, and mismanagement at borders and ports.
The World Economic Forum’s 2015 survey of investors indicated that “inadequate supply of infrastructure” was considered the third biggest obstacle to doing business in Africa, after “access to finance” and “corruption.”
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