Nigeria and France have enjoyed robust diplomatic relations over the years and both have indeed benefited from the bilateral relations.
Through the French Development Agency (AFD) France has invested in various sectors of Nigerian life including investing in tackling food crisis in conflict-ridden areas of Nigeria especially the north east region ravaged by the Boko Haram.
This bilateral relations received a boost when the French Minister of State for Development, Francophonie and International Partnerships, Chrysoula Zacharopoulou, visited Nigeria to represent the French Government at the inauguration of Nigeria’s 16 the President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu,
The Minister used the visit to connect with Lagos State Authorities responsible for water and land transportation, which included a deep-dive session in projects, supported by AFD even as she expressed satisfaction with the level of support France is giving to Lagos State in improving its public transport system.
Over the past 12 years, France through AFD has been investing $700 million in the development of Lagos State including $350 million to develop the Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS). This has contributed to reducing travel time and travel costs for millions of Lagosians and to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
After a briefing on urban mobility challenges at the Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA) in the presence of the Managing Director of Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA), Engr. Mrs. Abimbola Akinajo, the Minister embarked on a boat trip around Lagos island to see major infrastructures to be delivered under two key projects supported by France: the Lagos State Strategic Transport Master Plan (LSTMP) project and the Waterways Investment and Development of the Environment in Lagos State (WIDE-LAG) project.
Zacharopoulou said: “I was very impressed by my field visit this morning and I can testify the excellent partnership between France and Lagos State.”
She also emphasized that “France is committed to cutting down its greenhouse gas emissions by 75% between 1990 and 2050 to reach carbon neutrality. I am therefore very happy to acknowledge that Nigeria and Lagos State in particular, are going into the same direction through the decarbonization of the transport sector”.
According to a French Embassy statement, the on-going LSTMP project aims to enhance access to the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system through the construction of 4 Quality Bus Corridors (QBCs) for a total length of 28km, and to improve inter-modality through the provision of two interchange hubs that will connect metro, bus, ferry and taxis in Marina and Mile 2 to ensure seamless passenger transfer. This project, financed by AFD through a 178 M€ credit facility, and implemented by LAMATA,will run from 2019 to 2025 and it is expected to benefit a total of 1.5 million daily users.
LSTMP is part of the bold initiatives taken by this administration to tackle urban mobility challenges in Lagos.
According to the Managing Director of LAMATA, Engr. Abimbola Akinajo “Lagosians spend an average 30 hours weekly in traffic and spend up to 40% of their monthly incomes in it as against 15% as per international standards. LSTMP will greatly contribute to reducing travel time and travel costs for millions of Lagosians taking Lagos State’s multi-modal transport system up to the next level”.
The WIDE-LAG project is the new initiative blossomed by Lagos State-AFD partnership. The project’s objective is to develop mass public Inland Waterways Transport in Lagos to transport 24 million commuters by waterways every year. The project will significantly reduce travel cost, allow great travel time savings and large reduction of CO² emissions.
It will include the development of 6 priority ferry routes covering a total length of 129km and the upgrade of 20 ferry terminals and jetties. Lagos will also deploy the first electric vessels in Sub-Saharan Africa, being at the forefront of innovation. This project implemented by LASWA could run over 2024-2029 and reach a total amount of 300 M€ including 110M€ from AFD.
“Water is a defining feature of Lagos”, said Oluwadamilola Emmanuel, General Manager, LASWA. “While it is seen as a challenge today, it should rather be envisioned as an asset for the economic and sustainable development of Lagos State. I am pleased to embark on this ambitious investment to make Lagos Africa’s Model Mega City through an attractive, innovative, and efficient mode of transportation”. He further added that “Lagos can certainly become an international benchmark for Inland Waterways Transit like Bangkok or Sidney”.
In Lagos, 20% of carbon dioxide emissions are generated by the transport sector. With an estimated 22 million inhabitants today, Lagos’ population is expected to grow up to 40 million by 2040.
The French Minister of State also officially inaugurated the freshly launched French Tech Community – Lagos chapter launched in January 2023.
The French Tech Community in Lagos gathers startups and entrepreneurs which, while based in Nigeria, have a connection to France. It pursues the goal of promoting France and Nigeria as destinations for business and entrepreneurship, aiming to create bridges between the French and Nigerian tech ecosystems. The Lagos Community is part of a network of over 100 French Tech hubs across the world.
“I would like to commend the establishment of a French Tech Community in Lagos. Given the potential of the digital industry here, it was essential to create a structure that would make the Nigerian tech ecosystem more visible to French players and highlight the opportunities that this country offers”, Dr. Zacharopoulou said in her opening speech.
She added: “Lagos is undoubtedly the heart of African tech and home to the continent’s most promising startups.
“This is why French public operators are already involved through initiatives such as Digital Africa – an initiative of President Emmanuel Macron to support young entrepreneurs in Africa – and the iDice programme, which was recently launched by the Nigerian government with a financial contribution of 100 M Euros from AFD. We expect French private investors to become even more involved in the near future.”
Mrs Zacharopoulou also joined Dr Herbert Wigwe, Group Managing Director and CEO of Access Corporation and Mr Roosevelt Ogbonna, Managing Director and CEO of Access Bank Plc, for the launching of the “Access Bank French Desk”.
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