(African Development Bank) – The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank approved, on April 17, additional financing of 12.33 million euros for the ECOWAS Commission to cover part of the costs related to the study of the Abidjan–Lagos motorway corridor development project.

This corridor connects the capitals of five West African states - Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin and Nigeria - and covers some 1,028 km and eight border posts. The current route of the corridor crosses the major economic centers of the five participating member countries, from Bingerville, in the suburbs of Abidjan, to Mile 2 (Eric Moore) in Lagos.

The Abidjan–Lagos project, an important regional trade and transport corridor, connects economically dynamic cities in Africa, namely Abidjan, Accra, Cotonou, Lomé and Lagos. Its purpose is to strengthen trade and integration in West Africa, in particular by providing maritime port access to landlocked countries.

West Africa's transport sector plays a vital role in the region's economic development and generates around 5-8% of its gross domestic product. However, the material and immaterial infrastructure deficits considerably reduce its impact on regional economic growth. The strategic importance of this project is due to the fact that the Abidjan-Lagos axis accounts for nearly 75% of sub-regional commercial activities.

This road axis joins other corridors along the North-South axis and connects landlocked countries such as Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Chad. It not only connects the most densely populated and economically active areas of the West African sub-region, but it also crosses a rail network and joins the main ports and airports.

The Abidjan–Lagos corridor is a flagship project of the Program for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA), a continental initiative for which the African Development Bank is the executing agency. It is a component of the vast Dakar–Lagos Coastal Corridor Project and forms an important stretch of the Trans-African Highway Network in the ECOWAS region.

It was during the 44th ECOWAS Summit, held in March 2014, that a treaty on the establishment of the corridor was signed. The ECOWAS Commission, on behalf of the five member countries concerned, had requested, on this occasion, the Bank's support for the financing of preparatory studies for the implementation and management of the Abidjan-Lagos motorway corridor project. The Bank's total contribution for this flagship project amounts to EUR 22.4 million.