The African Development Bank (AfDB) and the Economic Community Of West African States Commission (ECOWAS) have signed an agreement for a study into a 1,000 kilometre highway linking Cote d’Ivoire’s commercial capital Abidjan and Lagos in Nigeria
The proposed Abidjan-Lagos Corridor Highway, a six-lane motorway, will connect the countries via Ghana, Togo and Benin.
The agreement comes about five years after the presidents of Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin and Nigeria, signed a treaty on the establishment of the highway in March 2014.
The AfDB has approved a financing package of US$12.6mn to finance part of the study for the project and mobilised a US$10.38mn grant from the EU Commission, bringing the total financing for this important study to US$22.7mn.
By linking some of Africa’s largest and economically dynamic cities, the road is set to promote cross-border trade and integrate fast-growing economies within the ECOWAS. This is expected to contribute to reducing the poverty levels of the population that depends on inter-regional trade for a livelihood.
Ebrima Faal, senior director of AfDB’s Nigeria office noted that the bank remains fully committed to the 2020 ECOWAS Vision.
“We will work closely with the public and private sectors to unlock new sources of growth for Africa while reducing inequality between countries and within countries. Together, we can unlock the enormous potentials of the West African region and deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals for the region,” Faal said.
