ECOWAS and the World Bank Hold a Mid-Term Review of the Regional Electricity Access Project

The mid-term review meeting of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Regional Electricity Access Project (REAP), which opened today, Tuesday 23 July 2024, in Abuja, Nigeria, is intended to take stock of the objectives achieved and the challenges encountered, assess the progress made since the project began in 2018, and identify the necessary adjustments to be made in order to achieve the said objectives.

The meeting was attended by experts from the ECOWAS Regional Coordination Unit, the coordinators of the National Project Implementation Units in The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau and Mali, and staff from the Commission of the regional organisation. For the World Bank team leader, Ms Elise Massan Akitani, the mid-term review of the PRAE is of the utmost importance.

‘This meeting will enable us, together with ECOWAS and all the countries involved in the project, to review the successes of the PRAE’s implementation, identify areas for improvement, and take decisions to accelerate the project’s implementation in order to achieve results by the end of the project in December 2025’, she said.

Initiated in 2018 with the support of the World Bank, the US$225 million Regional Electricity Access Project covers The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau and Mali, and is expected to bring electricity to 578 localities.

On behalf of the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr Oumar Alieu Touray, and the Commissioner for Infrastructure, Energy and Digitalisation, Sédiko Douka, the Director of Energy and Mines, Bayaornibè Dabiré, expressed his gratitude to the World Bank for its support in implementing this project, which is designed to increase access to electricity for the people of West Africa.

He reiterated ECOWAS’s commitment to working towards the success of the project, as well as the dedication of the national implementation units in The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau and Mali, which, he said, were sparing no effort to achieve its objectives in their respective countries. Bayaornibè Dabiré expressed his satisfaction with the implementation of the PRAE, despite a number of difficulties during the preparation phase and delays in implementation for various reasons.

‘Even if these difficulties affect the overall efficiency of the project, we can safely acknowledge that the strategic objective has not been undermined, and the project remains a priority that is perfectly aligned with the sectoral energy objectives of the countries concerned’, he said.

He urged the participants to engage in frank discussions to draw the necessary lessons, in order to better guide future actions.

This mid-term review meeting comes at the right time to assess the overall relevance and performance of the project, and to make key recommendations to speed up its implementation,’ he concluded.