Nigeria may, in five years, generate 10,000 megawatt (mw) of electricity if United States (US) President Barack Obama implements the report of the President’s Advisory Council on Doing Business in Africa (PAC-DBIA) before leaving office in January.
The PAC-DBIA comprising 15 American private sector leaders with business operations throughout Africa was appointed by Obama in 2014 to advise him on how to advance the US-Africa business agenda.
It recommended, among others, the acceleration of energy infrastructure in Nigeria where the U.S. is expected to pursue a detailed action plan to achieve 10,000mw of electricity.
The report advised that as a result of Nigeria’s enormous potential as the largest country in the continent in terms of both population and GDP, and because the electricity generation and distribution capacities in Nigeria are among the least developed on the continent, President Obama should focus on Nigeria as the focal point for energy infrastructure on the continent.
The advisors recommended that US and Africa policy makers should collaborate on identifying and facilitating investment in electricity generation, especially for the hard- to-finance early stage projects.
They further asked Obama to see the provision of electricity in Nigeria and other sub Saharan Africa countries as his greatest achievement to drive growth and development in sub Saharan Africa.
They asked President Obama to pursue tax treaties with key African countries poised for large scale growth and development, including Nigeria and Ethiopia.
While the advisors all have active business operations on the continent, they travelled as a delegation led by US Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker to East and West Africa to meet with presidents, ministers of trade, investment and commerce, as well as the leading private sector players in both African and US owned businesses.
Pritzker believes the private sector representatives comprising the PAC-DBIA have been instrumental in helping the Obama administration develop the trade and investment priorities that have led to an expanded U.S.-Africa commercial relationship.
“We have utilised their invaluable information, analysis, and recommendations to create sustainable commercial partnerships that lead to job growth, a stronger entrepreneurial ecosystem, and expanded economic opportunities. PAC-DBIA’s efforts continue to pay dividends for companies on both continents in areas as diverse as workforce training, energy, and transportation infrastructure.”
One of President Obama’s greatest legacies will be Power Africa, a comprehensive set of resources including US government backed financial and technical support to electrify Africa it added.
“Energy infrastructure is a fundamental enabler of growth, security and quality of life. It is for this reason that PAC-DBIA recommends that the US president make electricity its first and foremost priority”.
They also suggested the strengthening of vocational and skills training noting that Africa cannot develop without huge investment in skills training or sustained, without a well-trained workforce. Most countries in Africa have a skills shortage it added. There is a wide gap between the strong academic programs offered by many universities in Africa, and the pragmatic skills required to advance the economies of most African nations”.
Another recommendation the group is to improve travel routes and transportation based on their observation that Africa is the least connected continent, with less than 12 per cent of its trade being intra-regional versus over 60 per cent for the European Union.
They also recommended that US develop a coordinated financing strategy for Africa aviation projects across US government financing institutions, including the Export Import Bank and the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, both of which have programs that assist in the financing of aviation infrastructure.
