Cynthia Ezekwe

Members of the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) have approved the design for the $15 billion Lagos-Abidjan corridor highway development project, to deepen  regional economic integration.

The approval was given by the heads of member states of ECOWAS, chaired by Dave Umahi, minister of works, at its 21st ministerial steering committee meeting, held  in Lagos, Nigeria. 

Speaking on the history and progress of the Lagos-Abidjan highway development project, Umahi stated that the project, which was  initiated in 2013, had received significant funding support from the African Development Bank (AfDB).

He explained that  the heads of member states of ECOWAS have met to agree on the project noting  that various stages of development, including design, environmental impact assessment, and funding mechanisms, had been ongoing for the past 11 years.

“The design of the project, ESIA design, conceptualisation, funding mechanisms have been on in the past 11 years. As of today, we are going to listen to the committee of experts in terms of the design and so we believe that we will finalise and approve the design today, and then we set the goal for procurement, probably in our next meeting,” the minister said.

Francis Boakye, the minister of roads and highways, Ghana, stressed  the need for  infrastructure development, especially  roads, in driving socio-economic development.

Dwelling on the importance of infrastructure development, Boakye noted that  highways could facilitate trade, tourism, and economic activities, citing  the example of the United States’ economic boom as evidence of this correlation.

Boakye emphasised the significance of the Lagos-Abidjan highway project in promoting economic integration within West Africa. He also noted that Ghana’s significant involvement in the project demonstrated its commitment to regional economic integration.