Infrastructure: South Africa sends calling card from Davos to global investors, says Pinsent Masons

24 Jan 2013 | 03:47 pm |

In response to South African President Jacob Zuma's comment on the need to implement much needed infrastructure programmes across the African continent at the World Economic Forum's (WEF's) annual meeting in Davos, Richard Laudy, Global Head of Infrastructure at international law firm, Pinsent Masons, said:

"The need for upgrades to essential infrastructure across the African continent is clear, but the government of South Africa as well as other African states need a coordinated approach to bringing large scale private investment into infrastructure.

"There is an urgent need to implement modern approaches to public and private partnerships that enable private investment in infrastructure that will not only fund new infrastructure but help modernise procurement and improve the certainty of delivery of major infrastructure projects.

"This has already been proven on South Africa's current renewable energy programme which has benefited from private investment and modernised procurement practices."

Richard Laudy and a team of infrastructure experts in procurement, funding and finance and delivery are currently in Johannesburg talking with major infrastructure corporations about the need to modernise procurement to unlock much needed private investment.

Richard said: "South Africa's credit rating has already been downgraded by all three of the major rating agencies, so the prospect of government funding of new infrastructure is now more limited.

"Without this essential modernisation of procurement practices for infrastructure, growth and prospects for Africa will be constrained."

-Ends-

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