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Roads

Road conditions have improved in most African countries in recent years, as governments have strived to increase the density of their road networks and carry out institutional reforms. Tremendous progress has been made in establishing institutions to manage and maintain Africa’s roads, for example, but still only one in three rural Africans has access to an all-season road. Unable to reach urban markets, millions are trapped in subsistence agriculture. In cities, road construction has not kept pace with urbanization. In many countries, road maintenance remains inadequate. Even the Trans-African Highway, the symbol of modern Africa, has long gaps.

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Related Documents

Background Paper

Flagship Report Chapter- Roads: Broadening the Agenda

[download, 409.07 KB]
Working Paper

Transport Prices and Costs in Africa: A Review of the Main International Corridors

Author/s: Supee Teravaninthorn and Gaël Raballand
Poor road conditions are not the sole cause of high transport prices in Africa. Lack of competition, misdirected regulation, and border delays are at least as influential. Matters are worst in West and Central Africa, where trucking cartels are dominant.
[download, 1.67 MB]
Background Paper

The Burden of Maintenance: Roads in Sub-Saharan Africa

Author/s: Ken Gwilliam, Vivien Foster, Rodrigo Archondo-Callao, Cecilia Briceño-Garmendia, Alberto Nogales, and Kavita Sethi
Sub-Saharan Africa’s road network is sparse, except when seen against the region’s ability to pay for maintenance. Underspending on maintenance is endemic, but road funds and agencies, fuel levies, and realistic engineering offer a way forward.
[download, 208.86 KB]
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Key Messages

  • The last decade brought tremendous progress in the establishment of sound institutions to manage and maintain Africa’s trunk road network, but the process remains incomplete
  • However good the quality of the roads, road freight will continue to be costly and inefficient until competition in the trucking industry is increased and barriers to trade are lifted
  • Better access to roads in rural areas is critical to raising agricultural productivity
  • Africa’s rapidly growing cities groan under the mobility problems caused by too few paved roads and inadequate public transportation systems
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