afrol News, 29 August - Southern African Development Community (SADC) has signed a development pact that would see the region raise and identify bankable projects that can attract investors.

The memorandum of understanding, a first step towards operationalisation of SADC Project Preparation and Development Facility (PPDF), was signed Wednesday by SADC executive secretary Dr Tomaz Augusto Salomão and Paul C Baloyi, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA).

The parties said purpose of MOU is to clarify principles, roles and functional areas of cooperation between the SADC Secretariat and the DBSA in respect of hosting and operationalisation of SADC PPDF.

The MOU was approved during the just ended 28th Summit of SADC Heads of State and Government.

SADC PPDF is being established within the context of Regional Development Fund, and as an instrument to finance regional cooperation and integration projects.

The PPDF, according to SADC secretariat, will increase throughput for viable regional infrastructure projects and unleash abundant project capital available in the region by developing capacity for project identification, preparation and development. "This will ensure that projects are bankable and attractive to investors, and thereby contribute to the enhancement of the state of infrastructure in the region," explained secretariat statement.

The next step, said the statement, would be to put in place an appropriate framework for managing the facility, adding that SADC member states in collaboration with DBSA, will urgently examine an appropriate framework with a view to having the facility fully operational by end 2008.

By staff writer

© afrol News

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