The flagship of the Abijdan-Lagos Corridor Highway project preliminary estimated at US$15.1 billion, lies at the heart of the ECOWAS Vision 2050 and the 4 x 4 strategic objectives of the ECOWAS Commission Management.
According to the statement released by ECOWAS on Friday, the round table meeting was held on Tuesday in Abidjan, Côted’Ivoire under the auspices of the Commission, the African Development Bank AfDB and the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development EBID.
This was the 1st round table of development partners and major regional and international DFIs on the financing of the Construction of the Abidjan – Lagos Corridor Highway.
The 1,028 km supranational highway which will connect the economic capitals of five West African countries, namely Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin and Nigeria.
While forming an important part of the Trans-African Highway Network that commences from Praia in Cabo Verde through Dakar, Abidjan, Lagos which connects Central and East Africa to end at Mombasa in Kenya.
Commissioner for Infrastructure, Energy and Digitization of ECOWAS Commission, Sediko DOUKA who leds the ECOWAS delegation, comprising Mambury NJIE, Advisor for Economic, Financial Integration to the President of the ECOWAS Commission and Chris APPIAH, Acting Director of Transport of ECOWAS
Stated in his speech that the Abidjan-Lagos Road Corridor Project is being implemented not only as a road project but as an intergrated “development corridor” which will also catalyze deployment of other important sectors such as industry, agriculture, energy, environment, ICT, tourism in the region, thus becoming an economic corridor to boost the growth of the Region.
“For all these reasons, the ECOWAS Commission, African Development Bank and the Member States along the corridor call on all public and private investors to join in realizing this noble vision that will sustainably transform the economic landscape of our region” said Commissioner DOUKA.
For the African Development Bank, Joseph Ribeiro, Deputy Director General, West Africa, African Development Bank, representing Mrs. Marie-Laure Akin-Olugbade, Vice- President, Regional Development, Integration and Service Delivery, African Development Bank
In his speech, stressed the integrative nature of this project, which will have an important regional impact, adding that the project will very significantly in the realisation of the AfCFTA, the continental free trade area.
Also, Dr. Mabouba Diagne, Vice-President Finance and Corporate Services at the ECOWAS Bank for Investment, Development (BIDC), said the strong mobilization of IFDs and Donors at this 1st round table, marks important signal of the investor appetite for the construction of the Abidjan-Lagos Highway.
During the opening of the round table, with a speech delivered by Stéphane Ezoa, Deputy Director of Cabinet on behalf of the Minister of Equipment and Maintenance of Roads for Cote d’Ivoire, Dr. Amédé Koffi Kouakou stressed that the authorities of his country attach great importance to this highway and are committed to work with the other corridor countries and ECOWAS to achive this great vision of the five Presidents.
The Roundtable was marked by a very detailed presentation of the highway project covering the objectives, key investment elements, findings from the feasibility and Preliminary design studies, other technical details and the structure of the Corridor Management Authority, “ALCOMA” mandated to construct, manage and operate the highway on behalf of the five countries.