The United Kingdom Nigeria Infrastructure Advisory Facility (UKNIAF) has signed an agreement with the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) to support the Bureau in the areas of Institutional and human capacity building to enable BPE deliver on its mandate in delivering infrastructure projects in Nigeria using the Public Private Partnership (PPP) model.
Signing the agreement in Abuja, Director General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Mr. Alex A. Okoh said the ceremony is to appreciate UKNIAF’s willingness to support the PPP programme by providing technical assistance to support Nigeria’s transition towards low carbon climate resilient infrastructure to be delivered.
Okoh explained that the UKNIAF’s support will enable appropriate screening and selection of projects that promote inclusiveness, climate smart, reduce poverty and are potentially bankable, even as he noted that the agreement is the aftermath of the Federal Government’s policy on Administration of Concession in Nigeria, removing ambiguity and providing clarity on institutional responsibilities for PPP programme in Nigeria.
He added:“the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) are to identify projects, the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget & National Planning is to screen and approve in line with the National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan (NIIMP) and Economic Recovery Growth Plan (ERGP) documents while BPE is the project or transaction implementation agency”, Okoh stated.
According to him,UKNIAF has identified the critical areas to provide institutional and human capacity building support in the areas of integrating national and global social sustainability criteria in project preparation and selection; developing PPP project pipeline, producing concept notes, managing the transaction stage of the PPP project delivery lifecycle, and supporting the procurement process for appointment of transaction advisors.
Others are supporting where possible, the process of securing project preparation funds from UKNIAF’s panel of PPF fund providers; and providing ongoing support as required enhancing the capacity of the institution to reach commercial close on projects.
He explained that it was on that basis that UKNIAF sent the Bureau, a Mutual Accountability Framework (MAF) aimed at “fostering a shared agenda of ensuring aid effectiveness and serves to clearly state the roles of each party, their responsibilities and their commitment to working collaboratively”.
