The speakers at the ECOWAS consultative meeting on the creation of a Fund for Development and Financing of ECOWAS Transport and Energy sectors (FODETE) have emphasized the importance of developing a regional framework and a financing mechanism for the development of Infrastructure as a basis for sustainable development for countries in the community.
The meeting,
organised from 2nd to 4th March 2022 in Dakar, Senegal, made several recommendations on the levy rates and governance structure of FODETE.
The meeting also reiterated its support for FODETE as an innovative financing mechanism, especially for the implementation of the Regional Infrastructure Master Plan 2020-2045 adopted by the Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government.
It was noted that this master plan includes 201 regional projects with a financing requirement of USD 131 billion.
The ECOWAS Commission also committed itself to taking the necessary steps to present the FODETE dossier to the statutory bodies of ECOWAS during the year 2022. To this end, a roadmap for the implementation of FODETE was adopted during this meeting.
According to the statement by the ECOWAS Commission on its website on Thursday, the opening ceremony was marked by a welcome statement by Mr. Pathe Gueye, Commissioner for Infrastructure, ECOWAS Commission, while the opening speech was by Ambassador Sylvain Sambou Head of ECOWAS National Office delivered on behalf of the Minster of Foreign Affairs of Senegal.
It added that the purpose of this meeting was to present the results of the FODETE national consultations to the different Member States and elaborate a roadmap for the next steps.
According to the statement, the meeting will contribute towards building a consensus on key issues regarding the levy rates and governance structure of FODETE.
In attendance at the meeting were Heads of the ECOWAS National Offices, the Vice President Operations of the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID), the ECOWAS Commissioner for Infrastructure and PPDU.
It recalled that the 36th session of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government Summit, held in Abuja (Nigeria) on 22nd June 2009, endorsed the creation of a Fund for Development and Financing of ECOWAS Transport and Energy sectors (FODETE).
The fund will be dedicated to financing the development of regional infrastructure in the Transport and Energy sectors and is expected to be fed from a levy on the key export resources (Agriculture, Oil & Gas, Natural Minerals etc.) within the region.
GIK/APA