Africa: Public-private partnerships ‘have failed Africa’s poor’

Public-private partnerships in Africa over the past 15 years have generally failed to provide much-needed water and electricity, a new study shows. According to a study by the South African Institute of International Affairs, about 600-million people in sub-Saharan Africa lack access to electricity, about 300-million have no access to safe water, and there were just eight telephones per 100 inhabitants. The report acknowledged successes achieved by public-private partnerships in sectors such as telecommunications, transport, ports and eco-tourism, but said that much still needed to be done to hone an effective partnership model in water and electricity provision.