Why Infrastructure in Africa
- Africa investment in infrastructure is lagging behind versus BRIC countries
- Africa needs to spend around USD90 billion on infrastructure annually, and is currently estimated to have an annual shortfall in infrastructure spend of USD50 billion
- Population growth will increase pressure on already inadequate infrastructure e.g. 50% of the African population will live in cities by 2030
- Rising need for private sector investment, which has been growing by 13% since 2000, to assist in addressing the infrastructure deficit
- Areas that require investment include power, transport, information and communication technologies, water
Facts
- Africa has 15% of the world’s population and accounts for only 3% of energy consumption (AU 2011)
- Energy poverty: 59% of Africa’s population (~600m) without access to electricity vs 21% in Asian developing nations
- Demand for electricity in Africa is projected to increase by 5.7% annually from 2.4% growth in recent past
- Africa’s road density is sparse when viewed against the vastness of the continent. As a result, only one-third of Africans living in rural areas are within two kilometers of an all-season road, compared with two-thirds of the population in other developing regions
- Africa`s rail density per thousand square kilometers is less than half compared with the BRIC countries
- Africa’s water resources are abundant, but owing to an absence of water storage and irrigation infrastructure, they are grossly underutilized.