Investment in infrastructure critical to stem refugee crisis

In what has been coined the worst migration crisis in Europe since the end of World War II, hundreds of thousands of migrants from the Middle East and Africa have flocked to Europe in search of help.

Last year, about 170 000 refugees landed on Italian shores alone. With the rise of movement, there has been a sharp and tragic increase in refugee deaths.

The staggering numbers hold deep significance. Refugees are landing on the shores of some of Europe’s most financially strained countries.

The question that must be asked is: How can we address this in such a way that we don’t end up dealing with the consequences of the refugee crisis, but rather help prevent the crisis from occurring in the first place?

Through investment in infrastructure, many of the issues driving refugees to flee their home countries could begin to be resolved.

By opening investment projects in both the Middle East and Africa, the need for wage-workers will increase.

While this is certainly not a fix-all solution, it is a good start. Because when there are no economic opportunities at home, the risk of losing one’s life on the journey to Europe becomes worth it.

By promoting infrastructure on the African continent, we can begin to address the root cause of poverty, thus commencing the long journey to wide- scale social and economic improvements across African countries.

The construction, maintenance and development of large-scale projects require a vast number of staff.

But how can we ensure that invest- ment will produce beneficial results?

This is where we can turn to public private partnerships (PPP) and build, operate, and transfer models.

The former requires thoughtful and comprehensive collaboration between the government of a country and one or more private entities.

Such an agreement requires that governments work transparently and accountably to ensure private investors receive a high return on investment. It is vital that an advanced infrastructure development programme ease migration issues.

Although PPP-based infrastructure development will begin to solve the economic crisis throughout Africa, we also recognise that this is unfamiliar territory for many investors. African markets have a notoriously bad reputation, thus discouraging investments. However, lack of such investment may worsen the situation.

Next month Afidep will hold a global convention in Zurich, Switzerland to address the problem of funding.

Speakers from around the world, including delegates from the African Development Bank, plan to make a case for PPP-based development in Sub-Saharan Africa and the world at large.

The conference invites investors, project owners, industry experts and government officials to meet in one location.

Registration is open on the organisation’s website, www.afidep.com.

When there are no economic opportunities at home, the risk of losing one’s life becomes worth it