Discover the Trans-Africa highway and how it will transform the African Economy
Historically, a united African continent has been the vision and drive of a few great African
leaders.
Dr. Kwame Nkrumah has previously advocated for a united African front that would profit
greatly from one another's unity, gaining inspiration from sophisticated science and
technology to participate in collaborations that would encourage concord, increase economies,
and, as a result, eradicate poverty.Growing continental commerce cooperation, as well
as flexible border and port agreements, have necessitated the creation of a network that
allows for access to inaccessible locations while reducing journey time.
According to the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), the African continent
has seen a 52 percent increase in commerce to almost US $35 billion in the last five
years as a result of less severe border controls and lower tolls and taxes costs.
With the implementation of the world's most complete global market in the Continental
Free Trade Area (CFTA) across the African Union, the continent is confident in a favorable
reversal.
The apparent increase in trade and commercial operations has prompted a reasonable investment
in the road and rail networks, as well as other critical infrastructures, in order to
strengthen continental cooperation.
The ambitious Trans-African Highway has been identified as a viable alternative among others
with significant power to push this cause, despite the fact that it is still unfinished.
The huge intercontinental infrastructure has been discussed for more than half a century,
with the goal of completing it someday.
It was envisioned by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) in 1971 to traverse
the African continent, spanning a total of 60,000 kilometers of road networks divided
into nine key corridors/highways.
The Trans-African Highway project encompasses the building and maintenance of a network
of roads and highways across Africa.
The infrastructure, also known as the Trans-African Corridors, is a 56,683 km long corridor that
connects nine countries and is being built by the United Nations Economic Commission
for Africa (UNECA), the African Development Bank (ADB), and the African Union in collaboration
with regional international communities.
Although a fourth link north-south of the continent was established by the boundaries
of two Eastern West Courses, the 9 highway links have been classified into a group of
six major East-West corridors and three North-South routes.
Trans-African Highway 1, Cairo–Dakar Highway, 8,636 km (TAH 1).
The Cairo-Dakar Highway connects to the Trans-African Highway 7 (also known as the Dakar–Lagos
Highway) to provide a second north-south route along the continent's western edge.
It follows the Mediterranean coast of North Africa from Dakar to Algiers, passing through
Rabat, Tunis, Tripoli, and finally Cairo.
Even with the Algerian and Moroccan borders closed, the 8,636 kilometer coastline route
is currently complete and operational.
Even though the Nouadhibou-Nouakchott road was asphalt in 2005, a patchy few kilometers
near the border between Morocco's Western Sahara and Mauritania only have desert trails.
Trans-African Highway 2, Algiers–Lagos Highway, 4,504 km(TAH 2).
The Trans-African Highway 2 runs from Algiers to Lagos in the south, passing via the Tamanrasset
Province in the south.
Construction of portions of the Sahara began in the 1970s, well after its conception in
the mid-1960s (1962), making the Algiers–Lagos corridor one of the continent's oldest.
The Trans-Sahara highway is also one of the project's most complete roadway networks,
with only around 200 kilometers of unpaved desert track remaining, however border control
is strict regarding its use.
The central area, on the other hand, presents a challenge, necessitating stringent precautions
and vehicle requirements to ensure safety in the severe desert environment and climate.
Trans-African Highway 3 (TAH 3), Tripoli–Windhoek – (Cape Town) Highway, 10,808 km.
This route follows a latitudinal path from Tripoli, across Libya, to N'Djamena, Chad's
capital and largest city, and then on to Windhoek, Namibia, and lastly to Cape Town, South Africa,
which was initially excused because the project was designed during apartheid's era.
Its purpose is to connect the Northern and Southern African areas as an alternative to
the Cairo-Cape Town transnational route.
This North-South highway covers a total distance of around 10,808 kilometers, however it requires
repairs because it is the corridor with the most missing roadways.
Only national links between Libya, Cameroon, Angola, Namibia, and South Africa appear to
be functional.
Trans-African Highway 4, Cairo – Gaborone Highway, 10,228 km (TAH 4).
This 10,228-kilometer corridor runs the length of the African continent, from Cairo, Egypt,
via Khartoum, Sudan, and Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to Nairobi, Kenya, to Harare, Zimbabwe's capital,
and lastly to Cape Town, South Africa.
It's an alternative route to get to South Africa (Cape Town or Pretoria) from the north
of the continent.
The Qastal-Ashkeet border station currently provides road access to the Egypt-Sudan border.
The Ethiopian link is paved, although it passes through steep terrain, making it dangerous
to wander.
Nairobi's paved highway crosses the Lagos–Mombasa Highway in northern Kenya.
The Tans-African Highway 5 (TAH 5) is also called as the Cairo–Gaborone Highway or
Cairo–Pretoria Highway in documents, although this term can be disputed because the route
passes via South-Eastern Botswana.
Trans-African Highway 5 , Dakar–N’Djamena Highway, 4,496 km (TAH 5).
The Trans-Sahelian route connects seven countries and five capitals in West and East Africa,
all of which share a similar climate and atmosphere.
It is expected to loosen border barriers in order to promote trade and preserve the centuries-old
cultural harmony.
The 4,500-kilometer route runs from Dakar via Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, and Nigeria
to the most northern tip of Cameroon, ending within Chad's capital N'Djamena's western
border.
The structure is mostly complete, with the exception of a few kilometers (775 km) in
and around Western Mali that require urgent improvements, despite the fact that other
portions are still under construction.
Trans-African Highway 6, N’Djamena–Djibouti Highway, 4,219 km (TAH 6).
This 4,219-kilometer route diverts the Trans-Sahelian corridor from N'Djamena to Djibouti's port
on the Indian Ocean, creating a total 8,715-kilometer West-East link from Dakar.
The Ndjamena-Djibouti Highway, as well as the Trans-Sahelian corridor, were designed
to resemble original routes envisioned by the French Empire in the late 19th and early
20th centuries.
It begins in N'Djamena and travels to Djibouti, passing through Sudan's Darfur region and
Ethiopia's north.
It is made up of just under half of paved roads, with some notable sections in poor
condition.
The region between the Sudan and Chad borders has dangerous road stretches that have been
shut down, while Ethiopia's highland environment poses substantial obstacles to highway builders
and engineers.
Trans-African Highway 7, Dakar–Lagos Highway, 4,010 km (TAH 7).
From Mauritania in northern West Africa, right above Dakar, to Nigeria, the Trans-West African
Coastal Highway travels through a number of West African coastal countries.
The highway arcs around the continent's western extremity, passing through Dakar, Banjul,
Bissau, Conakry, Freetown, and Monrovia on its way to Nigeria, passing through Coastal
capitals such as Abidjan, the Ivory Coast's economic capital, Accra, Lomé, and Cotonou,
a large port city on Benin's south coast.
According to AU papers, the route is 4,560 kilometers long, with 3,777 kilometers paved,
accounting for nearly 83 percent of the total length.
The African Development Bank (ADB) estimates the highway to be 4,010 kilometers long, with
a 3,260-kilometer paved section excluding the 570-kilometer Nouakchott-Dakar length.
All highways are two-lanes, with the exception of a few minor four-lane motorways in the
eastern section of the route.
Trans-African Highway 8, Lagos–Mombasa Highway, 6,259 km (TAH 8).
This transnational highway connects with the Trans-West African Coastal Highway in Lagos
and runs all the way to Mombasa, Kenya's coastal city, along the Indian Ocean, forming the
continent's longest West-East network at 10,269 kilometers.
This route connects the western and eastern halves of the continent, passing through Yaoundé,
Cameroon's capital, Lagos, Bangui, Central African Republic, and Kampala, Uganda, on
its way to Mombasa, Kenya.
Because of the core part across the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Transcontinental
Channel is currently not a viable route between West and East.
Trans-African Highway 9, Beira–Lobito Highway, 3,523 km (TAH 9).
The Beira–Lobito Highway runs from Lobito, Angola, to Tripoli, Libya, and intersects
with the Tripoli–Cape Town Highway (Trans-African Highway 3).
It travels from Lusaka, Zambia's capital, via Harare, Zimbabwe, and finally Beira, Mozambique.
It is mostly completed in the south-eastern half, where it uses paved national roads in
Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique; however, the western half, which runs through most
of Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, is made up of earth tracks or once
paved roads that need to be repaired.
The transafrican highyway upon completion will Foster regional development and increase
trade.
This highway will finally unite the African continent and increase free trade between
the nations.
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