the $15.6 Billion Abidjan-Lagos Corridor: West Africa’s Game-Changing Highway for 75% of Regional Trade

The ECOWAS Commission-managed Abidjan-Lagos Corridor Highway is not just another project—it’s the most significant trade infrastructure investment in West African history.

Spanning 1,028km across five nations and supported by the African Development Bank Group and European Union, this corridor connects the economic powerhouses of Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin, and Nigeria, which collectively make up 75% of the region’s economic activity.

This project tackles head-on the physical bottlenecks that have long stifled regional integration in West Africa, with a staggering potential impact: $16 billion in added value, 70,000 direct jobs, and 160,000 indirect roles. By linking urban hubs that will serve 173 million people by 2050, this highway is fundamentally redrawing West Africa’s economic map.

The successful completion of this highway will help to significantly reduce the cost of cross-border logistics, targeting the 15-20% price inflation from poor infrastructure and the up to 72-hour border delays that plague truckers. The result will be a predictable, efficient transport artery—the essential foundation for businesses to scale across ECOWAS and compete effectively under AfCFTA.

The strategic play here is clear: this corridor is West Africa’s competitive answer to shifting global supply chains. It provides the logistics backbone needed to attract manufacturing investment and drive export diversification far beyond commodities.