A major portion of the funding required to improve a key West African road link is being supplied by the World Bank (WB). The US$470 million package will pay for maintenance and improvement work to the road linking Niger, Burkina Faso and Togo.
The road runs through the capitals of the three nations, Niamey in Niger, Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso and Lomé in Togo. The package is being provided through the International development Association (IDA).
The improvement works to the 1,065km road connection are of vital importance to landlocked Niger and Burkina Faso, two of the world’s poorest nations. Upgrading the road connection will allow better transport of goods along the route, delivering an economic lifeline to Niger and Burkina Faso. Access to Togo’s port at Lomé will help reduce the costs of exports and imports for Niger and Burkina Faso.