Our client needed to run workshops in multiple African countries to both French and English-speaking audiences. The aim was to give people the skills to grow the capacity of African countries enabling them to launch their own projects and manage financing from within local banking groups.

With a need for infrastructure development in Africa, where public sector resources are constrained, we were asked to create a programme that helps participants devise innovative approaches to funding projects that involve private sector investors and creditors, including privately managed pension funds, to accelerate the delivery of essential services like power, transport, water, and sanitation.

At the end of the course, people needed to be able to:

• break project analysis into its component parts
  
• evaluate roles played by various parties
  
• make qualitative judgments on project risk
  
• conduct careful quantitative financial analysis.

A 3-day programme was designed to familiarise participants with various models used for funding public infrastructure that involve private sector participation. It covered topics including: structuring transactions, sources of finance, credit enhancement techniques, and different models for public-private participation.

Using in-person tutor led discussions, case studies and interactive sessions, the programme was facilitated by both Euromoney Learning and inhouse subject matter experts to ensure real-time application back at work. This allowed participants to:

We designed a two-tiered end of programme assessment. Once participants passed both elements, they gained their certificate of attendance and course accreditation.

1. MCQ: to test their newfound knowledge and understanding.

2. Final Case Study: in teams, participants completed a simulated activity to finance a project, reflective of the types of projects they would be launching/financing after passing the course.

Participants have reported higher confidence that their chosen projects will be viable with locally sourced financing. They have a comprehensive understanding of project financing in the context of infrastructure, with access to more tools to structure viable financing packages in their region. Importantly, they have learned actionable financing strategies that they are able to use for real-world benefits.