Economy

Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko, during a recent address in Dakar, revealed the findings of a comprehensive national assessment on halted infrastructure projects. This diagnostic report pinpointed significant financial, technical, and administrative deficiencies as the root cause behind numerous unfinished or unexploited construction sites across the nation.

Our investigation has identified 245 infrastructure construction initiatives nationwide that are currently stalled, representing a substantial public investment totaling 279 billion CFA francs. During an inter-ministerial council focused on infrastructure, Prime Minister Sonko recalled that the Council of Ministers, in its session on April 15, had directed all ministerial departments to compile a detailed inventory of their respective ‘blocked’ projects.

According to the technical evaluation of these infrastructures, 245 halted projects were confirmed across the national territory. The Prime Minister underscored that the cessation of work on these vital developments has resulted in ‘dormant assets’ amounting to 279 billion CFA francs.

These identified projects encompass a range of infrastructure developments, including those that have been completed but remain unoperational, as well as those still in various stages of construction, as elaborated by the Prime Minister.

Ousmane Sonko emphasized that the predominant reason for these 245 infrastructure projects being ‘blocked’ is a critical shortage of financial resources.

He further noted that a number of infrastructures have also experienced halts due to various ‘technical’ complications.

In response to these widespread shortcomings, Prime Minister Sonko announced two pivotal decisions. Firstly, he has established a dedicated committee within the Prime Minister’s office, tasked with advancing and finalizing this crucial work. Secondly, he has issued a formal directive to expand the current inventory, expressing his firm belief that the existing list is far from comprehensive.

He urged the relevant government services to proactively address and ‘anticipate technical challenges related to the connection of hydraulic and electrical networks’ for these essential infrastructures.

Ousmane Sonko deemed it ‘inconceivable’ to embark on infrastructure development without a comprehensive plan for its subsequent operation. He identified this oversight as a contributing factor to the reported ‘blockages’ and lamented the ‘enormous losses’ that these stalled projects have generated.

The Prime Minister firmly attributed the delays in project delivery and the systemic failures to ‘deceit, negligence, and laxity.’ He asserted that moving forward, a policy of ‘zero tolerance’ must be rigorously applied to address this unacceptable situation concerning the halted infrastructure initiatives.