40th Coordination Meeting of WAPP Technical and Financial Partners

The 40th WAPP Technical and Financial Partners  coordination meeting was held  on Friday June 23, 2023 in Cotonou, the Republic of Benin at the Golden Tulip Hotel.

The Objective of the meeting is to continue discussions with WAPP Technical and Financial Partners on the progress of WAPP priority projects and, to agree on actions to be taken to accelerate their implementation, and to present them with new projects for support.

The meeting brought together representatives of the WAPP Technical and Financial Partners (TFP) and WAPP Member Utilities. The representatives of the ECOWAS Commission, ECOWAS Regional Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERERA), ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE), Project Preparation and Development Unit (PPDU), OMVG and TRANSCO CLSG also took part in the meeting.

The representatives of the following inter alia WAPP TFPs took part in the meeting:  Africa Development Bank (AfDB), ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID); European Union (EU); French Development Agency (AFD); Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA); World Bank (WB); West African Development Bank (BOAD); Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ); Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW); and Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC).

Siengui A. KI, Secretary General of WAPP, expressed his gratitude to the Government of the Republic of Benin, and to President Patrice Talon in particular, for extending a warm welcome to participants, and for their commitment to transforming Benin's energy landscape. Taking the opportunity, he also highlighted the significant achievements of the WAPP. He also enthusiastically announced the forthcoming inauguration of the new WAPP site in the commune of Abomey-Calavi, scheduled in October 2023. This site will be a tangible symbol of progress and energy development in the region.

The presence of Edouard DAHOME, Benin's Secretary of State for Energy, at this coordination meeting was particularly noteworthy. He took the opportunity to express his gratitude to WAPP for its leading role in the energy sector in Benin and the sub-region. In a captivating speech, he also stressed the vital importance of electricity to a country's development, asserting that without reliable and affordable energy, economic progress is hampered. He then highlighted the efforts undertaken by Benin since 2016, under the vision of President Patrice Talon, to undertake a far-reaching energy transformation. After underlining the sustained efforts made by the government, Edouard DAHOME officially declared open the "40th coordination meeting of WAPP Technical And Financial Partners".

The meeting provided an opportunity to review the status of implementation of the Regional Electricity Market, present the implementation progress of WAPP's priority projects adopted in the 2019-2033 ECOWAS Master Plan for the Development of Regional Power Generation and Transmission Infrastructure including the TRANSCO CLSG, the North Core Project, the OMVG and WAPP Capacity building program.
All the WAPP TFPs reiterated their commitment to support the WAPP priority projects and expressed their interest in financing the institution's projects that are of interest to them.
It should be recalled that this coordination meeting takes place twice a year, and is of particular importance in fostering cooperation and power projects development in West Africa.

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