The African Development Bank (AfDB) has stated that the $430 million highway connecting the South East region of Nigeria from Enugu to Bamenda, in Cameroon will be finished before the end of the year.
This was disclosed by the Bank’s President, Akinwunmi Adesina at the 59th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government in Ghana, citing that the project was part of its $16 billion worth of projects in West Africa alone.
He added that the Enugu-Cameroon highway would improve trade in West Africa, as it is also currently rounding up feasibility studies for an Abidjan-Lagos corridor by the end of 2021.
“We expect construction for the corridor to commence within 24 months,’’ Adesina said.
The AfDB chief spoke on other critical infrastructure projects that have facilitated trade in West Africa.
“The Senegambia Bridge is rapidly facilitating trade between Senegal and The Gambia.
“Our financing helped to double the capacity of the Lome container port in Togo, which is critical for regional transport and logistics.
“The Bamako to San Pedro corridor has helped to expand trade between Côte d’Ivoire and Mali by 34 per cent, while reducing transit time at the border from 24 hours to just two hours.
“The 303km road linking Ouagadougou and Lome has reduced travel time from six days to just two days.
“Our 650 million dollars financing for the transport corridors linking Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia will impact on economic opportunities for 51 million people,” he said.
Recall that last month WTO boss, Dr Okonjo-Iweala stated that for Africa to make the African Continental Free Trade Area work, the focus needs to be on logistics and simplifying movements of goods and services across the continent.
