The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank Group (www.AfDB.org) this week approved two loans to Cameroon designed to radically improve transport links with neighbouring Chad with major economic benefits to both countries.

The funds, EUR 318.24 million and EUR 12.24 million, are for the implementation of the fourth phase of the Transport Sector Support Program – Reconstruction of the Douala-N'Djamena Economic Corridor-Ngaoundéré-Garoua Section (PAST 4). The larger loan comes from the Bank Group, while the EUR 12.24 million is provided through the African Development Fund, the Bank Group's concessional lending window.

The much-anticipated allocations were agreed at the Bank’s headquarters in Abidjan on 13 December.

“The political choice made by the Cameroonian authorities to constantly raise the service level of the 2,100 km Douala-Ndjamena corridor is justified by the fact that it accounts for almost 35 percent of the country’s GDP and serves 35 percent and 20 percent of the population of Cameroon and Chad, respectively,” explained Serge N’Guessan, the African Development Bank’s Director General for Central Africa.

He added: “The renovation of the most deteriorated section, between Ngaoundéré and Garoua, will help improve the performance of the Cameroonian road network in order to promote participation and private investment in the agro-industrial, transport, and logistics sectors along the Douala-N’Djamena corridor and at the same time, will facilitate cross-border trade.”

Phase Four of PAST builds on the success of previous phases, introducing an integrated approach to develop the Douala-Ndjaména economic corridor. It addresses national infrastructure gaps while strengthening vulnerable communities against climate change impacts.

The initiative, which focuses on youth empowerment and gender equality, supports local industries and private sector growth in the promising sectors of agriculture, livestock, and agro industry. The programme strategically develops essential infrastructure to support the government's forthcoming agro-industrial development plans in the northern region.

The programme’s direct area of influence is in the Adamaoua (two districts) and Nord (three districts) regions, which are home to an estimated population of 5.68 million inhabitants. On average, women represent 51 percent of this population, while young people under 20 years old makeup more than half.