Unlocking Investment potential in Southern Africa

This project aims to improve Southern Africa’s investment climate through an integrated programme of Investment Policy Reviews (IPRs), peer learning and experience sharing on the basis of these reviews at regional level.

IPRs will use the Policy Framework for Investment (PFI) as a tool for improving the Civil Service capacity to design investment policy. They will be carried out by the OECD Secretariat and country teams led by investment policy makers and will engage numerous government agencies involved in developing investment-related policy. Other stakeholders include business and labour representatives and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) as well as donor agencies active in the field of private sector development and investment promotion.

The project will consist of undertaking investment reviews in four countries, followed by action plans for reform. It is also aimed at disseminating good practices regarding the implementation of investment policy reform in Southern Africa in order to build a sound investment framework in the region.

The project will be conducted for 3 years within the institutional framework of the NEPAD-OECD Africa Investment Initiative and under the oversight of the NEPAD Steering Committee as well as the OECD Investment Committee. See project process.

The project will involve three principal activities in 4 pilot countries :

• The first is to explain the process and evaluate the current investment policy regime of the pilot countries based on selected policy areas set out in the PFI;

• The second activity is to define time-bound priorities for regulatory simplification and investment policy reform following pre-defined criteria;

• The third phase is about providing technical support and building policy implementation capacity, based on specific requests and building on the demand created by the prioritisation process.

The project will hold 3 sub-regional forums to peer-review the pilot countries' reform action plans and share experience on investment policy implementation.