Lagos-Abidjan Expressway construction begins in Nov 2014

Presidents of the five concerned countries along the Abidjan-Lagos corridor have resolved that construction work on the proposed six-lane highway on the corridor should commence in November/December 2014.

They also decided that the private sector should be fully involved in the project.

These were parts of the conclusions reached at a meeting of the concerned Presidents and Heads of Government during a meeting held on Saturday on the sideline of the 21st ordinary session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of Africa Union holding in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The Presidents of Nigeria, Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana attended the meeting, while their counterparts from Togo and Benin were represented.

The meeting was called to receive and consider the report of a ministerial committee, led by Nigeria’s Minister of Works, Mr. Mike Onolemenen, on the proposed highway.

In preparation for the commencement of construction work, the Presidents decided to set up a Project Steering Committee to be made up of ministers of the affected country and be chaired by Onolemenen.

They also directed the ECOWAS Commission to immediately update the most recent relevant studies on the corridor in order to determine the actual cost of the project.

They also resolved to mobilise the AfDB, IPPF, AFC and PPDU to finance the detailed studies immediately and ensure that the studies were concluded by March 2014.

Onolemenen told the Presidents that after a thorough deliberation, his committee resolved that the heads of government should consider the available options for the full involvement of the private sector in project preparation, development and implementation.

He said the committee also resolved that a regional approach should be adopted for the development of the corridor through the establishment of a supra-national agency to manage the project implementation process to ensure uniformity in approach and standards.

He said, “We recommend the development of an appropriate legal framework to accord the corridor a regional status to prevent obstacles imposed by national laws and policies.

“There is the need to ensure the implementation of the adopted ECOWAS Regional Supplementary Act on axle load limitation and control to safeguard investments made in constructing the roads.”

It also called for the setting up of the Project Steering Committee for the construction of the highway made up of ministers from the member-states involved in the project.

In his welcome address, the President of Cote d’lvoire and the Chair of the ECOWAS Member States, Mr. Alassane Qouattara, re-emphasised the importance for the expansion of the corridor as it would improve the economic viability of the region.

While deliberating on the report, President Goodluck Jonathan, commended the ECOWAS Commission, the ministers as well as the experts for a job well done.

He urged his colleagues to adopt the recommendations.