Aerial view of Banjul Airport, Gambia.
© Gambia Civil Aviation Authority
Officials from The Gambia recently returned from a fact-finding visit to Cape Verde in mid-October to examine the way the airports Public-Private Partnership (PPP) was set-up there. Cape Verde is an island archipelago very close to The Gambia in West Africa.
In July 2022, France’s VINCI Airports signed a 40-year concession contract covering four international airports (at the capital city Praia, Sal, São Vicente, and Boa Vista) plus three domestic airports (São Nicolau, São Filipe, and Maio). The Cape Verde deal was the first concession contract signed by VINCI Airports in Africa.
Over a 40-year period, VINCI Airports and its Portuguese subsidiary ANA (owning, respectively, 70% and 30% stakes in the Cape Verde concession company) will be responsible for financing, operating, maintaining, extending. and upgrading the airports.
The financial aspects of the deal were completed in July last year with VINCI Airports securing €60 million ($65 million), maturing over 20 years, from three development banks: World Bank-IFC, Proparco (France), and DEG (Germany). The financing is certified under the Sustainability-Linked Financing (SLF) Framework.
Earlier this year, The Gambia’s Ministry of Transport Works and Infrastructure (MTWI) issued a request for proposals (RFP) to design, build, finance, operate and maintain a new terminal at Banjul Airport (BJL), the country’s only commercial gateway, but awards have yet to be made.
The Gambian team on the Cape Verde trip included officials from the MTWI and other ministries such as finance, trade, and public service, as well as The Gambia’s Civil Aviation Authority and National Road Authority, according to The Point newspaper.
One aspect that The Gambia will be scrutinizing is the way that Cape Verde has solidified a strategic link between tourism prospects, sustainability and the airport PPP deal covering seven gateways. VINCI Airports will be rolling out an environmental action plan including renewable energy production at airports.
CEO of VINCI Concessions and President of VINCI Airports, Nicolas Notebaert commented last year: “The Cape Verdean government has entrusted VINCI Airports with the responsibility of supporting the country’s growth in tourism while ensuring the environmental transformation of airports. We warmly welcome our new colleagues to the network and look forward to getting to work”.
Cape Verde welcomed 2.2 million passengers in 2022, approximately 80% of the total in 2019 and “has solid potential” believes VINCI. The airports division plans to open new routes by promoting the archipelago’s attractive features for tourists, including its expanding hospitality sector, choice of sports activities, natural surroundings, and its sunny winters.
The Gambian government is keen on PPPs and external funding to support its development aims, particularly in infrastructure. In 2021, Saudi Arabia’s Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) completed an overhaul of BJL thanks to a US$31 million loan. The project increased airport capacity by over 40%.
In July, MTWI, through The Gambia Ports Authority, signed the Banjul Ports concession agreement with the Albayakah group of companies for the expansion of the Banjul Port and construction of a new sea port at Sanyang.
Also in July, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) executive board completed its first review under an Extended Credit Facility (ECF) arrangement for The Gambia, enabling a disbursement of about US$10.95 million.
The IMF’s Deputy Managing Director Bo Li said that economic recovery was strengthening while inflation was progressively decelerating, albeit remaining high. He added: “The fiscal outturns in 2023 reflected good revenue performance but the fiscal deficit and public debt exceeded projections due to an accelerated execution of some infrastructure projects.”