Background:
PIDA Week was inaugurated in 2015 as a platform to bring together key stakeholders involved in the implementation of the PIDA programme, to take stock of progress and identify ways to continue to advance implementation. The first PIDA Week was held in Abidjan under the theme “Accelerating In-restructure Implementation for Africa’s Integration” while the second event focused on job creation - “Creating Jobs through Regional Infrastructure Development”. In 2017, PIDA Week continued with emphasis on job creation and economic transformation - “Regional Infrastructure Development for Job Creation and Economic Transformation” and in 2018 the key theme was “Realising Africa’s Integration through Smart Infrastructure and Good Governance”.
PIDA Week 2019 takes cognisance of the formation of the African Union Development Agency-NEPAD (AUDA-NEPAD), tasked among other things to coordinate and execute priority regional and continental development projects and to promote regional economic integration towards the accelerated realisation of Agenda 2063 – Africa’s vision and action plan. As such, this year’s PIDA Week will focus on anchoring infrastructure development as a key element through which AUDA-NEPAD will support and strengthen the capacity of member states and associated regional institutions to deliver on Africa’s transformation agenda.
At the first session of the Specialized Technical Committee on Transport, Transcontinental and Interregional Infrastructures, Energy and Tourism (STC-TTIIET) held in March 2017 in Lomé, Togo as well as the second session of the STC held in April 2019 in Cairo, Arab Republic of Egypt, the Ministers in charge of Transport and Energy recommended that the African Union Commission prepares the second phase of PIDA (PIDA PAP 2, 2021-2030).
