The African Development Fund (ADF) has approved a US$59.8mn loan to support the rehabilitation of a key transborder road section linking Benin and Togo
The project forms part of efforts to boost regional trade and economic integration across West Africa.
The financing will fund the rehabilitation of 78.8 kilometres of road between Kara and Kabou along the Benin-Togo border as part of the first phase of the Transit Roads and Transport Facilitation Project on the CU18 corridor.
The project is co-financed by the ADF, the concessional lending arm of the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) and the governments of Togo and Benin.
“This vital corridor will help strengthen economic competitiveness, accelerate the opening up of the inland areas of Benin and Togo, and consolidate sub-regional integration,” said Lamin Barrow, director general for West Africa at the AfDB.
The project includes the upgrading of the corridor stretching from the Benin border at Ouaké through Kémérida, Soundjina, Kara, Djamdé and Kabou into a 3.5-metre dual carriageway, with a six-lane section through the city of Kara.
It will also support the construction and rehabilitation of socio-economic and educational infrastructure, strengthen transport services and logistics along the corridor and introduce measures to reduce trade barriers and improve traffic flow.
Of the total ADF funding, US$50.3mn has been allocated to the Togolese section of the corridor, while the Beninese section will receive US$9.5mn.
Capacity-building programmes for various project implementing agencies and other groups are also planned.
Poor road conditions and high transport costs have long constrained economic activity and mobility in the region, disproportionately affecting vulnerable populations, particularly women engaged in cross-border commerce and market gardening.
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Togo, Benin border highway set for upgrade (Image source: Adobe Stock)
