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10th EDF
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Development policy proposals Infrastructure, communications and transport
Infrastructure: general presentation
This means networks for:
Developing infrastructure and the laws governing it helps:
- sustainable economic growth
- competitive trade
- employment (under good conditions)
- regional integration
- poverty reduction (MDGs)
African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries receive about 80% of EU development aid for infrastructure – mostly for transport (30% of funding under the European Development Fund (EDF).
Infrastructure: how the EU helps
- Transport – cheaper and better services
Better maintained transport assets, new trade corridors without borders and barriers, better and safer roads, competitive rail services, efficient ports including modern fisheries infrastructure and services meeting appropriate sanitary requirements, safe seas and ports, and safe, secure and efficient skies and airports. - Water and sanitation - sustainable use of finite resources
Meeting basic needs and improving integrated water-resources management at local, river basin/catchment, national and cross-border levels. - Energy - sustainable and affordable services
Better policy frameworks, more institutional capacity, better power generation, cross-border interconnections, grid extension and rural distribution. - Information/communication - access to affordable technology
Developing broadband infrastructure and non-commercial e-services linked to regional and national networks. Information and Communication Technologies ( ICTs) touch all sectors of life from education (e-learning) to government (e-government). The EC fund investment in the sector is in comparison to the other sectors limited because the ICT sector is in the hands of the private sector; EU funding is low compared to the other sectors. Instead, the EUC's contribution to the sector concentrates on regulatory reform regulatory reform and administrative capacity-building , to create an equal playing field in order to ensure private companies sector can enter the market in secure conditions.
EU-Africa Infrastructure partnership
Goal
The EU-Africa infrastructure partnership aims to ensure national and regional networks for transport, water, energy, telecoms and related services are interconnected across Africa.
What does it do?
It mainly assesses continental needs and coordinatesaction to enhance infrastructure networks across Africa.
How is it financed?
By several funds for Sub-Saharan Africa:
- EU infrastructure trust fund - implemented jointly with the European Investment Bank (EIB)
- European Development Fund (EDF) - regional and national resources
- intra-ACP resources - in line with the Programme for infrastructure development in Africa (PIDA) and I-STAP (under development by the AUC and NEPAD).
Who does what?
Action is coordinated with many other bodies:
- EU governments and the ICA
- Development banks
- Regional African groupings
The work of the partnership will be overseen by a steering committee (policy guidance, mechanisms to monitor progress implementing the EU infrastructure trust fund, consistency and coordination with other action).
Transport
What are the problems?
Transport is crucial for economic development. Backlogs in maintenance and costly and inefficient operations have serious effects on many other sectors.
Of all developing regions, Sub-Saharan Africa needs to spend the biggest share of its income on developing transport infrastructure, because of the wide spread of its population across a large land mass with very few ocean-navigable rivers.
The overall quality of the region's transport infrastructure is slowly improving - but is still hampered by complex and diverse operational barriers - e.g. cumbersome customs and administrative procedures, illegal roadblocks, conflicting regional trade arrangements.
This makes transport costs unnecessarily high - averaging 14% of the value of all exports compared with 8.6% for all developing countries, and higher still for many landlocked countries – Malawi (56%), Chad (52%) and Rwanda (48%).
EU policy
EU transport policy for developing countries is set out in its 2000 policy paper - sustainable transport in development 
To implement the policy, the EU and beneficiary ACP countries are working with:
- EU government donors
- Sub–Saharan Africa Transport Programme (SSATP) - an international partnership that facilitates policy development and capacity building in Sub-Saharan transport.
- EU, World Bank and African Development Bank (collectively through the “ Limelette process”)
This involves discussions between headquarters and field offices to identify how to work more effectively together, applying more broadly the lessons learnt in specific countries.
Priorities are budget support and infrastructure (transport, energy and water). - EIB – which manages 2 funds for private sector development under the EDF:
- the €2bn ACP Investment Facility (ACP-IF), under the Cotonou agreement, funded by contributions from EU governments.
ACP-IF operations and own-resources loans are complemented by an interest rate subsidy endowment, designed to increase their concessionality under certain specific conditions.
- the EU infrastructure trust fund (see 2007 annual report ) - Infrastructure consortium for Africa
Guidelines and resources
- Guidelines – EU development aid for transport
- Impact assessments - EU development aid for transport
- Africa country infrastructure diagnostic
Information/communications networks
General
Modern technologies can help developing countries reduce poverty and be competitive in business.
Role of developing countries
Government policies must support the technology sector by building institutional capacity and providing incentives (tax rebates, science parks, etc.).
Role of developed countries
Provide technical assistance and funding for infrastructure, including information and communications.
Internationally
More effective technology and knowledge-transfer can be achieved through e.g. more flexible intellectual property rights regimes, open access to knowledge and international partnerships.
This is a specific goal ("target 5") under MDG 8.
EU policy
Since information/communication technology is primarily developed by the private sector, EU funding is low compared to the other sectors.
Instead, the EU concentrates on regulatory reform and administrative capacity-building, to ensure private companies can enter the market in secure conditions.
However, there are a number of broadband telecommunications projects in the form of public-private-partnerships.
