The African Development Bank (AfDB) has announced that the African Investment Forum has secured $15.6 billion of investment interests for construction of the Lagos-Abidjan highway corridor.
This was disclosed by Dr Akinwunmi Adesina, the president, African Development Bank (AfDB), in a statement on Friday after a meeting with President Alassane Ouattara of Ivory Coast.
The Bank in a statement revealed that the transport sector in West Africa plays a key role in the economic development of the region and generates about five to eight per cent of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
What the AfDB President is saying
Adesina said that the investment would strengthen regional trade and integration in West Africa by linking the hinterlands of different Participating Member Countries (PMCs).
He tweeted, “Speaking to the Press at the Presidential Villa, together with H.E. President Alassane Ouattara. He was delighted to hear the African Investment Forum has secured $15.6 billion of investment interests for construction of the Lagos-Abidjan highway corridor.
The Corridor is expected to connect up to five west African capital cities covering approximately 1,028 km and eight border crossings, which are Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin and Nigeria.
AfDB says it will be the flagship project of the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA).
In a statement issued by AfDB recently said the Abidjan Lagos project is a key regional trade and transport corridor that interconnects some of the largest and most economically dynamic cities in Africa, Abidjan, Accra, Cotonou, Lomé and Lagos.
- It said, “The corridor interconnects the most densely populated and economically active parts of the sub-region. It intersects with a rail network and major ports/airports.
- “The transport sector in West Africa plays a key role in the economic development of the region and generates about five to eight per cent of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
- “This remains cognisant of the fact that an efficient regional transport network is an enabling infrastructure required to promote regional trade and socio-economic development, inter alia.
- “ECOWAS and WAEMU member states have consistently committed themselves to the financing of designated regional transport corridors.
They added that the Abidjan–Lagos transport corridor currently supports approximately 75 per cent of sub-regional trade activities, citing that a combination of hard and soft infrastructure deficiencies negates its optimal contribution to regional economic growth.
What you should know
The plans to connect West Africa’s coastal areas for trade and productivity have gathered renewed interests lately, as Nairametrics reported last year that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved $11.17 billion to link Nigeria’s coastal cities through the Lagos-Calabar rail, in a bid to boost trade in Nigeria for export development.
The FG added that the route is very important because, after the Lagos-Kano route, the Lagos-Calabar Coastal route will link all the coastal cities in the country.
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