The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is hosting its fourth Regional Infrastructure Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) Forum in Lagos, Nigeria, on May 15–16, 2025.
The event focuses on improving legal and regulatory frameworks to attract private investment for regional infrastructure projects.
Key stakeholders, including PPP Units from ECOWAS member states, national regulators, and international partners like the World Bank and the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), are participating. The forum will address challenges such as fragmented regulations and technical capacity gaps, which hinder the development of bankable projects like the Lagos–Abidjan and Praia–Dakar–Abidjan highway corridors.
Mr. Keba Fye, Acting Director of ECOWAS’s Project Preparation and Development Unit (PPDU), emphasized the need for harmonized policies during his opening remarks. “Despite progress, gaps remain in ensuring investor confidence due to risks in the enabling environment,” he stated. Presentations will highlight regulatory experiences from Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, and Senegal, alongside a demonstration of a new PPP screening tool.
The outcomes are expected to include actionable strategies for policy harmonization and risk mitigation, advancing ECOWAS’s goal of regional integration. Established in 1975, ECOWAS now comprises 12 member states following recent withdrawals by Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger. The bloc continues to pursue economic cohesion under its “ECOWAS of Peoples” vision for 2050.
