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TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE IN AFRICA:
BRIDGING THE GAP
Jeffrey N. Shane
Under Secretary for Policy
U.S. Department of Transportation
U.S.-Africa Infrastructure Conference
Corporate Council on Africa
Washington, DC
September 27, 2006
It is a great pleasure to be able to speak to you tonight, and to represent
the U.S. Department of Transportation as a co-sponsor of the Corporate Council
on Africa’s first U.S. – Africa Infrastructure Conference.
Tonight’s theme, indeed the theme of this week’s conference, is “The Importance
of Infrastructure in Africa.” I think we are all here tonight because we already
understand the importance of infrastructure to Africa.
Certainly anyone who has lived on or visited the African continent and needed to
receive a shipped piece of equipment, who took public transport between any two
African towns or cities, or who needed to travel by air from West Africa to East
Africa certainly understands the importance of transportation infrastructure in
Africa. Adequate, well maintained infrastructure is nothing less than a
prerequisite to Africa’s successful participation in the global economy. It is
essential to Africa’s long term economic growth, development, and prosperity.
Ironically, the place of transportation infrastructure in economic development
of a country, or indeed a region, while never denied, has too often been
overlooked. In past decades, transportation infrastructure was often viewed by
national decision makers as a second tier investment priority, pitted against
more immediate, socially-oriented poverty reduction programs. In the face of
fiscal pressures, spending on the upkeep of transportation infrastructure, let
alone on the building of new infrastructure, was often the first to be
postponed, if not simply forgone.
We are now experiencing a groundswell of understanding of the fundamental impact
of transportation on economies, in the stimulation of growth and in the
reduction of poverty. Consequently, the availability of funding for
transportation infrastructure is increasing, and it is not surprising these days
to find transportation components included as important elements of programs
designed to address urban poverty, agricultural productivity, even human
services delivery across the African continent and around the world. But we have
to be candid with ourselves; it seems unlikely that public sector spending in
Africa, or in the United States for that matter, will ever be able to keep up
with existing and future demand for critical transportation infrastructure.
That is one of the reasons we are here. As I reviewed the agenda for this
conference, I noticed some key themes that resonate deeply with me.
Among the most important from my transportation-centered perspective is the need
to continue to unlock the power of the private sector on the African continent.
Indeed, this is a message as relevant in Denver as it is in Dakar, and as
important in Jacksonville as it is in Johannesburg.
Here in the U.S., we have recognized that traditional laws, regulations and
practices have not provided an environment sufficiently conducive to private
participation in the development of transportation infrastructure. We have
engaged in a concerted effort in recent years to identify obstacles to private
investment in infrastructure, and we believe we are now making considerable
progress in addressing these constraints, and in engendering a more favorable
climate for investors in our infrastructure development market.
Many of our states are passing new public-private partnership legislation, and a
great many prospective private transportation projects are under development.
Our states have enjoyed success in leveraging public funds and attracting new
private investment though state infrastructure banks, a mechanism that is being
replicated in many places around the world, and which holds promise for African
nations. Even where state transportation agencies have opted to retain control
of infrastructure, they have developed innovative contracting approaches, such
as performance-based highway maintenance contracting to ensure the most
efficient provision of transportation infrastructure possible to the public--
again, an approach easily adapted by African decision-makers.
Importantly, we in the United States have recognized that we have much to gain
from the expertise of overseas firms. International companies have teamed with
U.S. firms and local project sponsors to develop projects in the United States,
and the products of their efforts reflect substantial hybridization to fit the
local, legal, regulatory, economic and social environment in which they must
operate.
Similar to our own experience, I believe that the pace and nature of integration
of the private sector role in infrastructure development in Africa should, and
will be set by local desires and conditions. There is a continuum of options for
private involvement in transportation infrastructure, from the contracting out
of operations and maintenance to outright private ownership of transportation
assets. Each approach offers varying levels of control, speed and quality of
delivery, and levels of risk and return. Some approaches can be implemented in
the immediate term, others will require the laying of a solid foundation to
create a predictable and stable environment in which private firms can
accurately assess and allocate the risks of their participation. Strong
commitment and consistent governance will be a fundamental condition for
success.
Vital U.S. and international resources, many represented in this very room, both
public and private, are available to assist African decision makers in this
task. Needless to say, we at the Department of Transportation are pleased to
share our experience with public-private partnerships with our African
counterparts as they move forward, and we hope that we in turn may learn from
their efforts.
U.S. companies have long been involved in transportation development throughout
Africa. It is particularly encouraging to see U.S. companies involved in toll
road concessions in West Africa, and in railroad concessions in Southern Africa.
Their presence has dramatically improved operations, as well as the efficiency
of these operations, and I believe that if the conditions are right, it
foreshadows a much bigger U.S. involvement in transportation public-private
partnerships across the continent.
Another important theme of this conference is the potential role of technology
in improving infrastructure utilization. When applied appropriately and
implemented systematically, new information technologies and management tools
have the potential to assist African transportation decision makers in better
managing and leveraging their transportation assets. Specialized information
technologies and applications, wireless communications, GPS-based systems, and
other supply chain logistics innovations are already widely in use around the
world. They bring us the benefit of doing more with what we have, and in
appropriate circumstances, the promise of minimizing the cost and disruption of
new construction when not absolutely necessary. In many cases, they enable us to
enhance the safety of the traveling public. These technologies are only useful,
however, when implemented as part of a comprehensive, sustainable system, which
includes provision for adequate maintenance, as well as the ongoing training of
operators, managers and maintenance staff. Hopefully by now we have all learned
that you can’t just deliver boxes of computers to an office and pretend that
your job is done. But somehow, I think we need to keep reminding ourselves of
that.
And a final and equally important theme of the conference, the issue of capacity
building, is fundamental to Africa’s goals to build an adequate transportation
infrastructure. Know-how, the “invisible infrastructure,” is essential to
encouraging private participation in African infrastructure, is a prerequisite
to the application of appropriate transportation technology, and ultimately, is
integral to the sound planning and management of safe and efficient
transportation systems in Africa.
We at the Department of Transportation have been actively engaged in
transportation capacity building with our counterparts across the African
continent on several fronts. Most of these programs are implemented within the
framework of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act, AGOA, often in coordination
with other U.S. agencies. We were pleased to see transportation as a focus of
the annual AGOA meeting held this past June in Washington, DC.
Notably, we are very proud of our Safe Skies for Africa program, which seeks to
assist African nations in improving aviation safety and security operations and
thereby meeting international aviation standards. Our mix of technical
assistance, training and the provision of critical equipment under this
multi-country program is aimed, among other things, at enabling African nations
to have access to the U.S. travel market. There have been many major
achievements under the Safe Skies for Africa program, but to highlight one major
accomplishment, I am happy to tell you that as a result of their involvement in
this program, Cape Verde now is fully compliant with both ICAO and FAA
standards, and has a carrier, TACV, that flies directly to the United States.
Our Nigeria Technical Assistance Project has similar aviation objectives, and
has assisted Nigeria’s airports, ports and railroads. Last year, our Federal
Railroad Administration completed an assessment of Nigeria’s railroads, and made
recommendations for the improvement of the rail infrastructure and for the
concessioning of the country’s rail lines. Let me add that this effort and
others have been conducted, in part, utilizing the U.S. private sector.
Our Federal Highway Administration has worked with local counterparts to
establish Technology Transfer Centers in nine Southern African countries. These
“T-square Centers,” as we call them, provide local transportation planners and
managers with access to best practices and a strong link to the international
technology arena, all to promote the exchange of innovations in transportation
that stimulate local economic growth and trade.
Our Federal Aviation Administration, Federal Transit Administration, and
Maritime Administration have all been active in technical exchanges with their
counterparts in Africa, to improve the delivery of transportation services and
the operation of transportation infrastructure.
We at the Department of Transportation have worked, and will continue to work in
close collaboration with our fellow agencies in the U.S. government that are so
active in transportation on the African continent – TDA, USAID, MCC, Ex-Im Bank,
OPIC and the Commerce and State Departments. We have also cooperated closely
with the World Bank in supporting projects in Africa, and we look forward to
deepening that relationship as we move forward.
I believe, as many others in this room do, that the United States and the
nations of Africa, as different as our experiences may be, share a common
opportunity to put new energy and resources into our respective transportation
systems, and in doing so, to become closer than ever. We look forward to working
with our African friends to bring this opportunity to fruition.
Thank you for your kind attention.
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