The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission has identified Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) as a procurement model to attain its objectives of social and economic development of the region, and strengthening the integration of the ECOWAS countries through a regional approach to the development of infrastructure. However, PPPs are complicated arrangements: insufficient expertise, knowledge-sharing and funding often prevent governments from developing and implementing physical, economic and social infrastructure projects with the private sector.

In that context, the ECOWAS Commission, through its Project Preparation and Development Unit (PPDU), has officially launched the ECOWAS PPP Online Platform, an official online knowledge management platform specializing in Public-Private Partnerships PPPs, and aiming at bridging that gap by empowering governments to design and deliver best-in-class infrastructure projects.

The ECOWAS PPP Platform is available in English, French and Portuguese and will:

• Bring together national and regional PPP public stakeholders as well as the private sector and non-state actors from West Africa in one location and offer them a space for learning and sharing;
• Fill the gap in reliable and trustworthy knowledge, data, and news on PPP projects development and implementation in the ECOWAS region;
• Compile and disseminate tools and resources on regional PPP policies, frameworks and guidelines to support the preparation and delivery of infrastructure projects (physical, economic and social);
• Build the expertise/skills of national and regional PPP stakeholders, and create the conditions needed to develop and manage PPPs in line with international best practices.

The ECOWAS PPP Platform was developed with the technical support of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) in the context of the West Africa Competitiveness Programme (WACOMP), which is funded by the European Union under the 11th European Development Fund (EDF). The WACOMP aims at strengthening the competitiveness of West Africa and to enhance the countries’ integration into the regional and international trading system, including the newly established African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).