There are strong indications that African countries are starting to take control of their own destinies rather than waiting for others to build infrastructure on their behalf. And that bodes well for the continent’s future, says Mark Pearson, programme director, TradeMark Southern Africa (TMSA). According to Pearson, countries are taking up the challenge of improving infrastructure. “There are a number of trade and transport infrastructure projects planned and being implemented, especially ports, railways, roads, power plants and power transmission systems,” he says. But he believes regional integration will play a key role in Africa achieving success. “Low levels of regional cooperation remains one of the biggest obstacles,” he says. “Infrastructure projects in Africa can only work on a region scale and so need to be planned regionally and implemented nationally, but as one project even if the project covers more than one country.” At the same time there needs to be more active follow-up on decisions made.
