Infrastructure development should create jobs
African countries are advised to treat infrastructural development projects as industries to create jobs instead of mere projects.
Shem Simuyemba, who represented the African Development Bank in a panel discussion at the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA) Week, said this on Tuesday.
The discussion focused on the best ways to develop infrastructure in Africa, grow economies and create jobs.
Simuyemba elaborated that multimillion-dollar projects should be used as opportunities to grow local economies and benefit local communities in terms of employment creation and capacity building.
“In most cases when such projects are established, we tend to import experts and materials from abroad, such as China.
These services are very expensive and take all the money out of the continent,” he said.
He advised that materials and experts, such as consulting engineers and advisory services, be sourced from within the country or another African country, unless there are none. Simuyemba said studies on which skills are available on the continent should be conducted so that such skills are marketed and utilised at home.
He said the bank, which spends N$50 billion per year on infrastructure development projects around Africa, promised to work with PIDA and support its projects for the next 50 years and beyond.
In Namibia, the bank provided a loan of N$3 billion for the construction of the new container terminal currently under way at the Port of Walvis Bay.
Started in 2012, PIDA is the blueprint for infrastructure transformation on the continent for the period 2012-2040 with one of its targets being to create 450 million jobs across Africa by 2040.
The five-day PIDA event presents an opportunity for those concerned about the development of infrastructure in Africa to renew their commitment to PIDA and to embark on new efforts to bring them closer to reality.
- NAMPA
Shem Simuyemba, who represented the African Development Bank in a panel discussion at the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA) Week, said this on Tuesday.
The discussion focused on the best ways to develop infrastructure in Africa, grow economies and create jobs.
Simuyemba elaborated that multimillion-dollar projects should be used as opportunities to grow local economies and benefit local communities in terms of employment creation and capacity building.
“In most cases when such projects are established, we tend to import experts and materials from abroad, such as China.
These services are very expensive and take all the money out of the continent,” he said.
He advised that materials and experts, such as consulting engineers and advisory services, be sourced from within the country or another African country, unless there are none. Simuyemba said studies on which skills are available on the continent should be conducted so that such skills are marketed and utilised at home.
He said the bank, which spends N$50 billion per year on infrastructure development projects around Africa, promised to work with PIDA and support its projects for the next 50 years and beyond.
In Namibia, the bank provided a loan of N$3 billion for the construction of the new container terminal currently under way at the Port of Walvis Bay.
Started in 2012, PIDA is the blueprint for infrastructure transformation on the continent for the period 2012-2040 with one of its targets being to create 450 million jobs across Africa by 2040.
The five-day PIDA event presents an opportunity for those concerned about the development of infrastructure in Africa to renew their commitment to PIDA and to embark on new efforts to bring them closer to reality.
- NAMPA
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