In a parting shot to investors at an economic summit in London, South Africa President Cyril Ramaphosa on Tuesday told them Africa needed between US$130 billion and US$170 billion annually to develop its infrastructure – a business opportunity they should not miss.
Ramaphosa, who arrived in Britain on Monday for a two-day working visit, participated in the 6th Annual Financial Times Africa Summit in the British capital.
He called on business to form part of Africa’s great leap forward, saying the African continent required some $130 billion to $170 billion a year for its infrastructure development.
But this, the president added, would only be achieved in collaboration with the global community, significant private funding, as well as partnerships for mutual benefit.
“On its part, South Africa was in the process of setting up an infrastructure fund to leverage investments from financial institutions, multilateral development banks, asset managers and commercial banks”, the president said at the end of his working visit on Tuesday.
Ramaphosa also said that there was a global move towards cleaner energy sources in the world, with the ever-sunny African continent perfectly placed for investment in wind, solar, bioenergy, hydro and natural gas.
In this regard, the president said his country’s renewable energy independent power producer programme has attracted nearly US$14 billion in private sector investment in 102 projects, creating 40,000 jobs in the process.
NM/jn/APA