Financing for maritime corridor will strengthen connectivity

Project launch ceremony

COMOROS: Senior African Development Bank officials attended the official ceremony presided over by President of the Union of the Comoros, Azali Assoumani to launch the Maritime Corridor and Regional Trade Facilitation Project which represents $137million in finance from the institution.

The project aims to modernise port infrastructure that is essential to the economic development of the islands of the Union of the Comoros, facilitate trade and strengthen regional connectivity. It will enable the Indian Ocean archipelago to capitalise on its strategic geographical position in the Mozambique Channel and become a logistics hub between Africa and Asia.

The Bank Group's financing consists of a principal grant of $135 million from the African Development Fund, the Bank Group's concessional window, and another grant of $2 million from the Transition Support Fund, a mechanism for countries in transition.

Other partners, including the World Bank, the Islamic Development Bank, and the French Development Agency, will be joined by the European Union and the European Investment Bank in co-financing the project, mobilising together more than $110 million in additional funding. The Global Centre for Adaptation has also provided support for the assessment of climate risks to port infrastructure and adaptation options to be considered in the design of the structures.

“The maritime corridor we are launching today is an eloquent testimony to our ability to build a resilient nation, fully integrated into regional and continental dynamics,” said President Assoumani. “It is a living symbol of our openness to the world, a bridge between people, a vehicle for trade, cooperation and shared prosperity," he added.

Comorian Minister of Maritime and Air Transport, Yasmine Hassane Alfeine, praised the African Development Bank Group as “a loyal strategic partner whose technical and financial support consistently accompanies efforts to realise a vision of development based on sustainability, integration and infrastructure resilience.”

“Today, thanks to this strengthened corporation, we are taking a new step in the modernisation of our port and maritime infrastructure, with the prospect of creating a special economic zone,” added Alfeine.

The project is aligned with the Bank Group's 2024-2033 Ten-Year Strategy and the “Four Cardinal Points” of the institution's president, Sidi Ould Tah. It will enable the construction of resilient infrastructure and the development of agricultural and fisheries value chains and will facilitate the creation of thousands of jobs for young people and women.

“This flagship project of the Comoros Emerging Plan 2030 will contribute to developing value chains in agriculture and fisheries, while creating economic opportunities for young people and women,” said Laté Lawson Zankli, Country Programme Advisor, representing the Bank Group at the ceremony.