ECOWAS's Infrastructure : A Regional Perspective

Ranganathan, Rupa ; Foster, Vivien

关键词: ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS;    AGGREGATES;    AIR;    AIR MARKET;    AIR SAFETY;   

DOI  :  10.1596/1813-9450-5899
RP-ID  :  WPS5899

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

Infrastructure improvements boostedgrowth in the Economic Community of West African States(ECOWAS) by one percentage point per capita per year during1995-2005, primarily thanks to growth in information andcommunication technology. Deficient power infrastructureheld growth back by 0.1 percent. Raising the region'sinfrastructure to the level of Mauritius could boost growthby 5 percentage points. Overall, infrastructure in the 15ECOWAS countries ranks consistently behind southern Africaacross many indicators. However, there is parity in accessto household services -- water, sanitation, and power.ECOWAS has a well-developed regional road network, thoughsea corridors and ports need attention. Surface transport isexpensive and slow, owing to cartelization, restrictiveregulations, and delays. There is no regional rail network.Air transport has improved despite the lack of a stronghub-and-spoke structure. Safety remains a concern.Electrical power, the most expensive and least reliable inAfrica, reaches 50 percent of the population but meets just30 percent of demand. Regional power trading would bringsubstantial benefits if Guinea could become a hydropowerexporter. Prices for critical ICT services are relativelyhigh. Recent panregional initiatives have improved roaming.New projects are underway to provide access and improvedservices to unconnected countries. Completing andmaintaining ECOWAS's infrastructure will requiresustained spending of $1.5 billion annually for a decade,with one-third going to power. Although the necessaryspending is only 1 percent of regional GDP, somecountries' share is between 5 and 25 percent ofnational GDP. Clearly, external assistance will be needed.