As traditional procurement models were continuously outpaced by public–private partnerships (PPPs), Africa’s infrastructure advancement could lean on the lessons learnt and promote private and public cooperation.

This was the message that emerged on Wednesday at the opening ceremony of the fifth Public Private Partnership Africa Conference, in Sandton, which moved to rouse continental support for the roles PPPs could play in Africa’s growth.

With the private sector increasingly recognised as the engine of economic growth, the conference aimed to act as a platform to mobilise PPPs to develop much-needed infrastructure on a pan-African level.

A PPP model of infrastructure project development was required to drive development and economic growth of the continent, Development Bank of Southern Africa CEO Patrick Dlamini said, adding that PPP projects had the potential to be “much more successful” than traditional procurement models.

PPP models for infrastructure development were “catching on” and increasingly being looked at as a model for governments to build on private sector capital, expertise and skills, reiterated National Treasury senior project adviser James Aiello.

Nigeria’s Minister of Works, Mike Onolememen, speaking on behalf of Nigeria’s Vice President, Mohammed Sambo, said for Africa to simulate the pace of global economic growth, showing signs of gaining traction, over $57-trillion in investments would be needed for infrastructure between now and 2020.

And Africa’s wide infrastructure gap, despite “painting a grim picture”, could enable private sector participation.

Aiello concluded that South Africa continued to share the lessons learnt in its own PPPs, including the construction of the Gautrain, with countries, such as Kenya and Malawi, which showed that simple PPPs could work well in the development of the rising continent.