Africa Investment Forum Showcases Advances In Regional Corridors And Connectivity

The Africa Investment Forum AIF held in Morocco this December provided a platform for the African Development Bank and its partners to reaffirm their commitment to investing in regional corridors. Leaders passionately discussed the concrete steps their countries and organisations are taking to enhance regional connectivity, highlighting some of the notable projects that are fostering greater integration across the continent.

Nardos Bekele-Thomas, CEO of AUDA-NEPAD, cited the Chirundu one-stop border post linking Zambia and Zimbabwe as a prime example. This initiative reduced cargo clearance times from over 48 hours in 2022 to under 14 hours in 2024a remarkable 60 improvement. Similarly, the Cinkans one-stop border post connecting Burkina Faso and Togo decreased border crossing times from 2-3 days to just 1-2 hours.

The integrated corridor approach focuses on transport, energy, digital connectivity and industrial hubs, while considering job creation, urban-rural connectivity and climate resilience. When we connect Africa, we empower Africa, she said during the AIFs closing ceremony.

Samaila Zubairu, CEO of the African Finance Corporation, expressed optimism about the speedy pace at which deals to enhance connectivity were proceeding from conceptualization to implementation, citing the Lobito corridor in Angola. The Lobito Corridor is an example of a project for which we signed the MoU just a year ago that scaled very fast, he said.

The Lobito Corridor, a 10 billion infrastructure project, encompasses rail, road, bridges, telecommunications, energy, and agribusiness developments. Key project partners include the African Development Bank, which has committed about 500 million, the Africa Finance Corporation as the overall Project Developer, and the Development Bank of Southern Africa leading the first project phase.