Africa’s total infrastructure investment needs $150bn yearly – Minister

By Adeola Tukuru

Abuja

Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Okechukwu Enelamah, yesterday revealed that World Bank estimates that Africa’s total infrastructure investment requirements at $120-150 billion per annum.
He further explained that the World Bank estimates the gap between infrastructure investment requirements and available financial resources at about $60-80 billion per annum
Enelamah, while briefing newsmen in Abuja on the High Level Policy and Private Sector Trade and Investment Facilitation Partnership Forum taking place on the 2nd and 3rd of November in Abuja,added that the United Nation Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) forecasts that developing countries will need an additional $2.5 trillion annually in foreign and domestic investment to meet the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
According to him “This event is a significant step in the drive towards facilitating trade and investment not only for Nigeria, but sub-regionally and on the African Continent.
“Nigerian and African economies need to be connected, integrated and diversified and facilitating investment and trade will be key to achieving these objectives ,”
He further added that major world economies and over 30 African country representatives will converge in Abuja as the event is co-hosted by Nigeria and the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) in partnership with the WTO Friends of Investment Facilitation for Development (FIFD).