Madagascar - Economic Competitiveness Support Programme, Phase III (PACE III)

The proposed operation concerns phase three of the Economic Competitiveness Support Programme (PACE III) in Madagascar. PACE is a three-year programme-based operation covering the 2017, 2018 and 2019 financial years. PACE III reforms aim to consolidate the achievements of previous programmes and support Government’s efforts to implement the reforms listed in the National Development Plan (NDP) 2015-2019. PACE III will lay emphasis on improving country's competitiveness to attract more public and private investment in job-creating sectors such as agro-industry. Therefore, the programme has two components. The first component: “Strengthen the regulatory and institutional framework for the promotion of public and private investment” will help to create a favourable environment for the promotion of public-private partnerships (PPPs) to develop backbone infrastructure projects. The second (“Improve sector governance to support economic competitiveness”) will place emphasis on enhancing energy and transport sector performance. The continuity sought in this Phase III also stems from the programme-based nature of the operation. This approach will help to establish a medium-term dialogue platform with the authorities and improve aid predictability in order to facilitate alignment with the country’s development policies. It will provide part of the country’s funding needs for the 2019 financial year.