Studies have revealed that the current population of the SADC Region, which is at approximately 272 million, will grow at a rate of about 2% per annum to reach approximately 350 million by 2027. Already the region is not satisfying current infrastructure requirements, so innovative approaches are required for the challenges of the future. The SADC Region is embarking on a programme to deliver these infrastructure requirements by 2027.

As part of the Programme of Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA), an amount of USD 64 billion has been identified as what is needed to roll out a number of priority projects identified for the Short Term Action Plan which runs until 2017 as part of the SADC Regional Infrastructure Development Master Plant (RIDMP), according to the SADC Regional Infrastructure Investment Conference (RIIC) which was held in the Joaquim Chissano International Conference Centre in Maputo, Mozambique on 26 to 28 June.

Of this, USD13,48 billion is needed to spend on water infrastructure specifically, transport (USD 16,28 billion) and ICT (USD21,4 billion) the only other two sectors needing larger investments, according to the findings at the Conference.

The RIIC resulted from a Summit of Heads of State and Government in August 2007, directing the SADC Council of Ministers to oversee the development of a SADC Regional Infrastructure Development Master Plan (RIDMP). The SADC RIDNP is an integral part of the Programme of Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA), aimed at collective implementation at the continental level, with leadership provided by the African Union.

The RIDMP and the SADC Infrastructure Vision 2027, aims to scale up implementation of regional infrastructure in the Energy, Transport, Water, ICT, Meteorology and Tourism sectors, with the Master Plan being implemented in three phases:

• Short Term: 2013 – 2017
• Medium Term: 2017 – 2022
• Long Term: 2022 – 2027

The Master Plan was validated by SADC Ministers responsible for infrastructure in June 2012 in Luanda, Angola. It was then recommended by Council for adoption by the SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government at its meeting in Maputo, Mozambique in August 2012.

Hosted by the Government of Mozambique with the coordination of the SADC Secretariat and the support of Trademark Southern Africa, the theme of the RIIC was “Accelerating investment in SADC infrastructure though Sustainable and Innovative Financing and delegates included SADC Heads of State and Government, Ministers and senior officials from SADC member states, heads of continental and regional organisations, international cooperating partners, investors and business organisations.