Follow Us on Google
The Federal Government of Nigeria has again recommended Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) as a key driver of infrastructure development in West Africa to boost economic growth.
The Director-General of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), Dr Jobson Oseodion Ewalefoh, emphasised that the policy is a strategic mechanism for addressing the region’s infrastructure deficit, saying governments can no longer rely solely on public resources to deliver the roads, railways, housing, water and other critical infrastructure needed for sustainable economic growth.
Speaking during a panel session at the ECOWAS Infrastructure Forum in Abidjan, Ewalefoh said PPPs have become an essential alternative to traditional public procurement, enabling governments to partner with the private sector to finance, develop, deliver, operate and maintain infrastructure while benefiting from private sector innovation, technical expertise and efficient risk allocation.
He noted that as infrastructure needs continue to outpace public resources across the region, governments must create enabling environments that attract greater private sector participation through transparent regulatory frameworks and bankable projects.
According to him, while governments will continue to identify and procure priority infrastructure projects through the conventional PPP process, additional opportunities exist to expand the pipeline of projects through well-regulated unsolicited proposals initiated by the private sector.
He explained that unsolicited PPP proposals enable private investors to identify viable public infrastructure needs, undertake project development at their own cost and assume the associated risks, thereby easing the financial burden on governments.
He stressed, however, that unsolicited proposals are not intended to replace the conventional procurement process but to complement it, particularly where governments lack the resources to finance project preparation.
“An unsolicited proposal is a complementary proposal. We do not have enough public resources to develop every project through the solicited route. What we have done is to pragmatically transfer that responsibility and the associated risks of project development to the private sector,” he said.
Ewalefoh explained that although unsolicited projects originate from the private sector, they are subjected to the same rigorous appraisal process as government-sponsored PPP projects.
Other News
He said Nigeria has strengthened its PPP framework through clear eligibility criteria, structured governance procedures, the Swiss Challenge procurement method, non-refundable application fees and performance bonds to ensure that only credible and bankable unsolicited proposals proceed through the transaction process.
Ewalefoh also tasked development partners with investing more in project preparation, noting that while many are willing to finance infrastructure projects, they are often reluctant to fund the development of bankable projects.
“If everyone agrees that Africa lacks bankable projects, then we must ask why development partners are unwilling to invest in preparing those projects. That is precisely the gap unsolicited proposals help to fill.”
He stressed that West Africa’s growing demand for critical infrastructure requires innovative financing solutions tailored to the region’s development realities.
Ewalefoh also advocated closer collaboration among ECOWAS member states through a regional network of national PPP institutions to strengthen technical capacity, promote knowledge sharing and harmonise best practices for project appraisal and implementation across the sub-region.
He said greater regional coordination would also strengthen the credibility of PPP transactions by promoting common evaluation standards and improving information sharing on cross-border infrastructure projects and unsolicited proposals with regional implications.
The panel session also featured representatives from Ghana, Senegal, and Côte d’Ivoire, who shared their respective countries’ experiences and perspectives on leveraging PPPs to accelerate infrastructure development across the West African sub-region.
The session ended with a shared consensus among panellists that Public-Private Partnerships remain the most viable framework for mobilising private investment, bridging West Africa’s infrastructure gap, and accelerating sustainable economic development across the region.
Ewalefoh reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to strengthening the PPP ecosystem through transparent regulation, sound governance, and innovative project development frameworks that attract credible private investment into critical infrastructure across Nigeria and the wider West African region.
