Over $50 million has been approved by the Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS leaders as a contributory fund for the feasibility study and design of the six-lane Lagos-Abidjan highway project.
The Lagos- Abidjan road when completed would transverse Ghana, Benin Republic and Togo.
The approval for the economic strategic project came today at a meeting with ECOWAS Ministers of Works and Infrastructure chaired by President Goodluck Jonathan on the sidelines of the on-going 22nd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
The chairman of the Ministerial Project Steering Committee of the project and Nigerian Minister of Works, Mike Onolememen, at the meeting disclosed that the $50 million to be contributed by the ECOWAS states was to ensure that work on the road project start in earnest by the first quarter of this year.
He also informed that a total sum $16 million is expected from African Development Bank as the fund off the design and feasibility studies would be in excess of $50 million contributory fund from EVOWAS States.
“The feasibility studies is going to far in excess of $50 million dollars, So the AfDB offered that they have this money, that is the remaining 16 million US dollars to contribute towards raising the total money for the design”
“Now for the full design to be paid for, we actually look forward to getting additional funds from development partners and multi national agencies. But to show commitment from member-states, that is why we requesting for the seed money of $50 million”, the Minister said.
Onolemen told Journalists after the meeting that that the project when completed would achieve proper regional integration in West Africa and also open up the sub- region for commerce.
“For instance you can imagine what a six lane dual Carriageway leading from Lagos to Abidjan and in future from Abidjan to Dakar will do to the economy of the sub-region. It will certainly transform the economy of the sub-region”
“Nigerian alone provides 50 percent of the population of the sub-region. So that means manufacturers and businessmen in our country entrepreneur in our country will now have unfettered access to the vast markets of ECOWAS and that is one of the major achievements this project will deliver in addition to bringing about better integration between nations and nationalities of member-states”, Onolememen added.
