Angola will invest $21 million in feasibility studies and engineering designs for a planned West-East highway stretching more than 1,300 kilometres, a project the government describes as the ‘true road corridor of Lobito’ and a key pillar of its economic diversification and regional integration strategy.
The project was formally launched on Monday in Luanda at an event hosted by the Ministry of Public Works, Urban Planning and Housing. The ceremony centred on the signing of a memorandum of understanding that will enable the start of technical studies for the infrastructure, with a consortium of financial institutions securing funding for this initial phase.
The Minister of Public Works, Urban Planning and Housing had previously described the future West-East highway as a ‘true road corridor of Lobito’, positioning the route as a surface-transport counterpart to the Lobito Railway Corridor — already regarded as one of the central axes of Angola’s economic diversification and regional integration agenda. At more than 1,300 kilometres in length, the highway would connect Angola’s Atlantic coast to the country’s interior provinces.
Fernando Manuel, head of the Roads Department at the National Roads Institute of Angola (INEA), said the project represents a further step forward in expanding and modernising the national road network, strengthening both connectivity and economic development across the country.
The initiative comes as Angola has been pursuing an aggressive programme of motorway expansion after decades with virtually no such infrastructure. According to data from the Ministry of Public Works, approximately 58.7% of Angola’s national road network remains unpaved, underscoring the strategic importance of projects of this scale for improving internal mobility and facilitating the movement of goods between regions.
The West-East highway adds to a second major road project already at an advanced study stage: the planned North-South motorway, spanning approximately 1,400 kilometres, which will link Cunene province in the south to the Democratic Republic of Congo, passing through the provinces of Zaire and Cabinda — the latter two to be connected by a bridge. That project is being undertaken by Chinese state-owned contractor China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) at an estimated cost of around $2.5 billion, and will be the first motorway built in Angola in 50 years of independence.
With the formal launch of studies for the West-East highway, Angola is now advancing two major strategic road corridors simultaneously — one running north to south and another running west to east. The Angolan government expects the combined projects to fundamentally transform the country’s transport network over the coming years, facilitating the movement of people and goods and deepening Angola’s connectivity with neighbouring countries in the region.
Source: Mercado / Original article: https://mercado.co.ao/angola-investe-21-milhoes-de-dolares-em-estudos-para-a-futura-autoestrada-oeste-leste/
