Minister of Works Dave Umahi has been selected to chair the ministerial committee on Abidjan-Lagos multinational highway 1,028km development project that starts from Eric Moore in Lagos to Trans-African highway corridors of five ECOWAS countries.
The Abidjan – Lagos corridor is a flagship project of the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA). The transport corridor forms part of the wider Dakar-Lagos corridor and is a major part of the Trans African Highway Network within the ECOWAS region.
The project interconnects the capital cities of five western African states, (Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin and Nigeria), covering approximately 1,028km and eight border crossings. The corridor’s current alignment traverses all major economic centres of the five participating member countries (PMCs) starting from “Bingerville”, a suburb of Abidjan and ending at Mile 2 (Eric Moore) in Lagos.
The study phase of the funding of the project is funded by the European Union and African Development Bank while the construction phase of the project will be concessioned and tolled by expatriates and individuals.
In his opening statement, Umahi stated that the project started in 2013 but suffered some setbacks due to COVID-19.
He noted that the project had built up expectations from ECOWAS countries, adding that the COVID-19 global pandemic slowed down the construction phase of the project while he affirmed that it would take off in 2025 and drive the transhipment of trade across African borders with seamless road interactions connecting the five ECOWAS countries.
