Bechtel, a global leader in engineering, procurement and construction, will work with a leading U.S.-based development agency to accelerate the growth of local infrastructure across Africa.
Bechtel will partner with the U.S.-Africa Development Foundation (USADF) to deliver community-level infrastructure projects that drive the creation of local enterprises. Bechtel’s work will be guided from its African headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya, which opened last year. The multi-year partnership between Bechtel and USADF was announced on July 2, during a press conference in Cote D’Ivoire.
“Our partnership with Bechtel will create pathways to prosperity for underserved communities throughout Africa,” said U.S. African Development Foundation President and CEO C.D. Glin. “Our community-led development approach includes the provision of grant financing in response to community identified needs and opportunities, ensuring Africans have a voice and a choice in their own development. By investing in Africans and their ideas, we spur self-reliance and sustainability, increasing household incomes, creating jobs, and improving local lives and local enterprise.”
USADF is taking action in response to the acute need across Africa for expanded access to roads, clean water, and reliable and affordable electricity that will change communities and transform disadvantaged people from observers to active, self-reliant participants in the growth of their local economies. To deliver a greater impact for local communities and enterprises, Bechtel and USADF intend to take on some of the most challenging projects in Africa.
“Our approach includes transferring technical knowledge to communities, local organizations, and businesses to empower them to develop, design, and manage their own projects, including safety, quality, ethics, sustainability, cost, and schedule,” said Andrew Patterson, Bechtel’s region president for Africa.
The partnership has already started work in the Kibera area of Nairobi, where Bechtel is providing engineering and project management to local NGOs working to solve water and sanitation problems.
