Capacity-Building Workshops on Public-Private Partnerships in Zambia

12 - 16 February 2024

Radisson Blu Hotel

Lusaka

, Zambia

Profile of the group (workshop 1)

A total of 73 participants from 32 institutions attended the first workshop on Monday 12 February 2024, 30 women (41%) and 43 men (59%). Most of the participants were from the Ministry of Finance and National Planning (32), including the staff of the PPP Office. A wide range of line ministries and executive agencies were represented, with an average of one participant per ministry.

Profile of the group (workshop 2)

In total, 56 participants from 24 institutions attended the second workshop from Tuesday to Thursday, 21 women (38%) and 35 men (62%). All of them have also attended the 1^st Workshop on Monday. Most of the participants were from the Ministry of Finance and National Planning (28), including the staff of the PPP Office. As in the 1^st Workshop, A wide range of line ministries and executive agencies were represented, with an average of one participant per ministry.

A High-level Meeting with the PPP Council of Ministers of Zambia

Four ministers attended the meeting, namely:

Honourable Situmbeko Musokotwane (Dr.), MP
Minister of Finance and National Planning
Chairperson of the PPP Council
Honourable Charles Milupi, MP
Minister of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development
Vice Chairperson of the PPP Council
Honourable Chipoka Mulenga, MP
Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry
Honourable Frank Tayali, MP
Minister of Transport and Logistics

Other members of the Council were also present: Mrs. Margaret Kunda Chalwe-Mudenda, Dr. Abraham Mwenda, Mr Mukela Muyunda, Mr Noel Nkhoma, and Mr Noel Nkhoma.

Under the UN Development Account project entitled "Towards integrated national financing framework (INFF)", UNCTAD in collaboration with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and the Ministry of Finance and National Planning of Zambia (MFNP) will conduct capacity-building workshops on Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) in Zambia, with a focus on specific sectors such as the transport sector.

To address specific actions in the Action Plan developed by UNECA which identified the key actions to support the Government of Zambia in improving its capacity to implement and manage sustainable public-private partnerships (PPPs) and building on UNCTAD's PPPs capacity building and training programme for transport and logistics, UNCTAD, together with UNECA, will organize two back-to-back in-person workshops on PPPs and one high-level session with the PPP Council of Zambia from 12th to 16th February 2024.

The first workshop aims to raise awareness and build fundamental knowledge among key stakeholders and agencies regarding PPPs and their sustainable development in Zambia. The workshop will particularly focus on infrastructure supporting trade and development, with particular emphasis on transport, logistics, and energy infrastructure.

The second workshop aims to further develop the institutional capacity of Zambian government agencies on PPPs by building technical knowledge and understanding of PPPs and targeting smaller, targeted audience involved in PPPs/infrastructure projects.

In addition, a High-level Session with the PPP Council of Ministers of Zambia will be organized to provide the Council with an overview of the key issues to be considered when examining PPP project proposals.

The overall objective of this capacity-building activity is to provide the Government of Zambia and its agencies with the necessary knowledge to further develop and master the skills required to deliver PPP projects that are well-prepared and bankable, but also environmentally and socially sustainable.