Abidjan: The International Monetary Fund (IMF), with financial backing from the Governments of Japan and Germany, and in collaboration with regional technical assistance centers (AFRITACs Central and West), organized three editions of the Interregional Seminar on Public Investment Management (SEIGIP) in the years 2022, 2023, and 2025, aimed at enhancing public investment in Francophone Sub-Saharan Africa.
According to International Monetary Fund, the seminars convened approximately 60 senior officials from 21 sub-Saharan African countries, predominantly Francophone, to evaluate the impact of IMF capacity development and the potential leverage of South-South cooperation. The first seminar addressed Public Investment Management (PIM) challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, emphasizing the necessity of robust legal and institutional frameworks and discussing approaches for identifying and supporting climate change-sensitive public investments.
The second seminar, hosted in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire from May 30 to June 1, 2023, continued the focus on PIM reforms. It covered a range of topics including project appraisal and selection, budgeting and execution, asset management, and fiscal risks. Emphasis was placed on the connection between budgeting quality and execution quality, and the importance of sustainable management of public assets.
The third seminar, held in Libreville, Gabon from April 28-30, 2025, delved deeper into the upstream phases of the PIM cycle. It focused on the need for systematic ex-ante evaluation to improve project selection, sharing best practices for project selection, and the digitalization of PIM processes to align with budgetary information systems.
The successive SEIGIPs highlighted the value of long-term exchanges involving technical assistance providers and national experts. Many participants attended multiple editions, reflecting a growing mastery of the topics due to the assistance provided by the IMF and its regional centers. Country experiences generated significant debate, and practical exercises facilitated group dynamics and professional networking.
The seminar format has been stabilized and well-received, with 97.7% of participants in SEIGIP 3 expressing confidence in applying acquired knowledge and skills. Feedback indicated strong satisfaction with the seminar content, and enthusiasm for the tutorials was notably high.
Moving forward, there is a recognized need to consolidate these efforts by extending the seminar duration to allow for more in-depth training and dissemination of best practices. SEIGIP 4 is slated to take place from January 26 to 30, 2026, in Nouakchott, Mauritania.