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ECOWAS and AfDB have inducted ALCoMA’s board, moving the 1,028km Abidjan–Lagos Corridor Highway into its operational rollout across five economies.

ABIDJAN, Côte d’Ivoire — February 25, 2026.
One of Africa’s most ambitious infrastructure projects has crossed a critical threshold.
The Abidjan–Lagos Corridor Highway, a 1,028-kilometre transnational artery linking five of West Africa’s most dynamic economies, has officially moved into its operational phase following the activation of its governing authority.
This shift—from planning to institutional execution—marks a defining moment in the region’s long-standing push to transform fragmented national markets into a seamless economic corridor.
At the center of this transition is the establishment of the Abidjan–Lagos Corridor Management Authority (ALCoMA), whose 10-member Board of Directors has now been formally inducted.
The orientation session, convened by ECOWAS and the African Development Bank (AfDB) in Abidjan, is more than administrative onboarding—it is the operational foundation of a project designed to reshape trade, logistics, and industrial growth across:
Côte d’Ivoire
Ghana
Togo
Benin
Nigeria
Backed by a corridor treaty endorsed at the highest political level, the project carries supranational status, allowing it to transcend the regulatory and bureaucratic constraints that have historically slowed cross-border infrastructure in Africa.
Stretching across some of the most densely populated and economically active zones in West Africa, the corridor is envisioned as a multi-layered development platform, not just a highway.
Its design integrates:
High-capacity transport infrastructure
Trade facilitation systems and border efficiency frameworks
Industrial and logistics hubs along the route
Spatial development strategies to anchor economic activity
By 2030, the corridor is expected to function as a central trade spine—linking ports, cities, and production zones into a unified economic ecosystem.
West Africa’s growth paradox has long been clear: strong economic potential, constrained by weak connectivity.
Despite high intra-regional demand, trade within ECOWAS remains limited due to:
Border delays and fragmented customs systems
Poor road infrastructure and logistics inefficiencies
High transport costs across relatively short distances
The Abidjan–Lagos Corridor directly targets these bottlenecks.
According to Chris Appiah, ECOWAS Director of Transport:
“A seamless cross-border highway will accelerate development and unlock the full economic potential of the sub-region.”
The emphasis is not just on movement—but on efficiency, speed, and integration.
The African Development Bank Group has played a central role in moving the project toward viability, providing:
$25 million in early-stage technical and feasibility support
Structuring expertise to bring the project closer to financial closure
Looking ahead, the Bank—alongside the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) and other partners—is expected to mobilize the substantial capital required for full implementation.
AfDB’s Mike Salawou reinforced the urgency:
“Our citizens are waiting for this corridor to facilitate trade and daily economic activity.”
This reflects a broader reality: infrastructure delays are not abstract—they carry real economic and social costs.
What distinguishes the Abidjan–Lagos project is its integrated corridor model.
Rather than treating infrastructure as an isolated asset, the project aligns:
Transport networks
Trade systems
Industrial development
Urban expansion
This approach transforms the highway into a growth engine, capable of catalyzing:
Manufacturing clusters
Logistics ecosystems
Cross-border value chains
It is infrastructure designed not just to connect—but to compound economic activity along its path.
As part of the induction programme, delegates visited one of Abidjan’s major bridge projects—an AfDB-backed initiative that has significantly reduced congestion in Yopougon, home to nearly 2 million residents.
With over €600 million mobilized, alongside contributions from JICA (€103 million) and the Global Environment Facility (€6.4 million), the project offers a tangible example of how coordinated financing and execution can deliver immediate urban impact.
The corridor aims to replicate this effect—at regional scale.
The Abidjan–Lagos Corridor represents a shift in how Africa approaches infrastructure:
From national projects → regional systems
From construction → economic integration
From ambition → institutional execution
With governance structures now in place, the project enters a phase where delivery—not design—will define its success.
West Africa does not lack economic potential.
It lacks the connective infrastructure to unlock it.
The Abidjan–Lagos Corridor is designed to close that gap—and with its operational phase now underway, the region’s most important trade artery is no longer a concept.
It is becoming a system.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB). Enhanced analysis and editorial by Streamline.
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