EU allots funds for several infrastructure projects under the $150 billion Global Gateway Investment Plan for Africa

EU allots funds for several infrastructure projects under the $150 billion Global Gateway Investment Plan for Africa

The European Commission has allotted massive funds for several key infrastructure projects in Africa under the €150 billion ‘Global Gateway Investment Plan for Africa, announced during the European Union-Africa Summit in February 2022, a top EU official said.

Speaking at a press conference on 28 November, European Commission President Ursula von de Leyen said the EU is mobilising massive funding for energy projects, from solar to hydropower, to interconnectors and has signed renewable energy partnerships with Namibia and Egypt on the margins of COP27 under the plan.

She said, “We are ready to sign a new financing agreement worth €750 million on clean energy, on strategic transport corridors and on digitalisation. Work should start soon on submarine cables to digitally connect Eastern and Western Africa with Europe”.

Strategic corridors

Eleven strategic transport corridors have been identified for enhanced and greener EU-Africa connectivity. These corridors will facilitate trade and mobility within Africa and between Africa and Europe, develop new value chains and benefit industries in both continents, a statement from the European Commission said. They are: Abidjan-Lagos, Abidjan-Ouagadougou, Dakar-Abidjan, Cotonou-Niamey, Libreville / Kribi / Douala-n’djamena, Douala / Kribi-Kampala, Dar es salaam-Nairobi-Addis ababa-Berbera / djibouti, Mombasa-Kisangani, Maputo-Gaborone-Walvis Bay, Durban-Lusaka, Cairo-Khartoum-Juba-Kampala.

Green Energy initiative

The EU-Africa Green Energy Initiative