Improving project bankability is key to bridging Africa’s infrastructure gap, according to Ope Onkibun, head of project finance at Arise.Speaking during a recent online event, he said Africa’s ability to raise financing remained a stumbling block. “Achieving financial close for projects in Africa is very challenging. As it is, the continent has an annual infrastructure financing gap of $70 billion. Of all the projects being developed around the continent, at least 80% never reach financial close.”He said it was therefore of critical importance to deliver bankable projects from the get-go as that would go a long way towards raising the required financing and allowing the continent to close the infrastructure gap.Adero Okudo, associate vice president Milele Energy, said more often than not policy and the enabling environment around projects was where the hold-up was. “Governments will need to address policy if they are going to increase investment in projects on the continent. It is not just policy and governance but also how projects are prepared and delivered to investors that must change. It has to be done in such a way that it communicates a healthy and sustainable return to investors,” she said. Hasnayn Ebrahim, managing director at Africa International Advisors, agreed, saying that perspectives around projects required a contextual understanding of the African requirements. “As with any other place in the world, there is a unique dimension to Africa, and it would be remiss to paint the continent with the same brush as one would other regions of the world. It is a significantly large continent that delivers several structural challenges by its size alone.”He said it was essential in Africa to take a transnational approach to infrastructure projects to ensure any form of bankability. “To do that one requires large-scale regional buy-in and cooperation to make any project viable.”Ebrahim said the success lay in delivering bankable projects. “For any large-scale investment, there are certain things that have to be in place – and chief among these is the market. That is critical.”He said second to that was an environment that allowed projects to develop – and just as important, the ability to secure financing.The speakers agreed that in Africa the lack of financing, or the ability to secure financing, was a major challenge. “The issue of bankability is already an issue at the early stages of project development,” said Ibrah M Wahabou, lead private sector development and project preparation at AUDA-Nepad. “Unless we can deliver bankable projects we will not secure financing on the continent and the infrastructure gap will widen.”According to Onkibun, it is already difficult to raise finance for infrastructure projects globally. The perception of risk associated with Africa only makes the process more difficult. “There is a perception that African projects are riskier. There has to be a separation between countries and even between projects on the continent.”
