Public-private partnerships for the European External Investment Plan in Africa: insights from the experience of the French cooperation in the West African energy sector

Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) are a form of cooperation between public authorities and the private sector to achieve long-term development objectives. To this aim, authority, responsibility and risks are shared between the public and the private partner, while resources are joint. There is no widely accepted definition of what Public Private Partnerships are, neither common models and practices. In this study, we will focus on the definitions and methods used by the European Union. The European Union (EU) promotes public private partnerships as innovative financial solutions to enlarge its strategy and external cooperation actions. In 2016, the European Commission (EC) launched the External Investment Plan (EIP) which promotes investments in Africa and the Neighborhood Countries to create decent job opportunities, stimulate a sustainable development and, ultimately, track some of the root causes of migration. The EIP provides an integrated framework to promote the participation of the private sector in financing for development and, in particular, to develop a blending agenda.[...]