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Geopolitics of Urban Infrastructure Financing in Sub-Saharan Africa
Investment in infrastructure is promoted as a key tool for sustainable urban development. According to the African Development Bank, it would require between 130 and 170 billion dollars annually to meet infrastructure needs.
Various national and international stakeholders have responded to this call: bilateral development agencies, investment funds, private companies and consultancy firms have fed into different urban infrastructure sectors by using multiple financing tools.
This context represents a fertile ground for competition: the approaches of the continent's countries' "traditional" partners are challenged by the growing interest of emerging actors (China, Turkey, the Gulf States, etc.) and also by an increasing recourse to national financing. This event aims to update the debate on infrastructure financing in a context of strong urban growth while shedding light on the geopolitical stakes.
PROGRAM
Welcoming words: Alain Antil, director of the Sub-Saharan Africa Center, Ifri et Sina Schlimmer, coordinator of the program "Governing Africa's urban transitions" at the Sub-Saharan Africa Center, Ifri
Chair and moderation: Paulius Kulikauskas, chief of the UN-Habitat Office for European Institutions
Speakers:
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Samuel Goldstein, Africa development director, Meridiam
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Astrid Haas, urban economic analyst
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James Christopher Mizes, post-doctoral research fellow, University Paris Nanterre, Institut francilien Recherche, Innovation, Société
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Abou Ahmad Seck, member of the executive council of the Senegalese General Delegation of the Promotion of Urban Hubs
For more informations, please contact Sina Schlimmer schlimmer@ifri.org
By 2050, about 60% of the population of Sub-Saharan Africa will live in urban areas. The governance of the rapid growth of capital and intermediary cities in Africa is one of the priorities of the international development agenda.