MALAWI: Public-Private Partnership Viability Assessment Study for Six Selected Airports

The government of Malawi, in its bid to identify optimal PPP options for investment and operational efficiency in the airport subsector, reached out to PPIAF and the Global Infrastructure Facility (GIF) for support on early stage analytical studies to help map out the private sector participation opportunities. In response, PPIAF and the GIF provided grant funding for a viability assessment for public-private partnerships (PPPs) in selected airports in the country. In the project’s first phase, the team analyzed three PPP options for the airports in Malawi: a concession with private funding, a concession with blended private and public financing, and a performance-based management contract. The study established that five airports could potentially participate in PPP transactions that could lead to private investment and operational management in Malawi’s air transport sector. Options ranged from airport infrastructure upgrades to developing greenfield airports to replace existing ones. In the project’s second phase, the team conducted a financial evaluation of several PPP options with different bundling arrangements and conducted a preliminary market sounding to determine private sector interest. As a next step, the government could undertake full feasibility studies of these options and proceed with PPP transactions.