In addition to the €48.02m from the ADF, the European Union is providing a grant of €29.6m and the government of Guinea is contributing €460.000, bringing the total cost to €78.08m.

The project will improve 75km of the road, including bridge structures, between the two countries which have become rundown with the maintenance threshold being neglected as a result of conflicts and the Ebola epidemic. 

It is in line with the development bank’s ten-year strategy for boosting infrastructure and promoting regional integration in Africa, as well as its attempts to increase integration and industrialisation in Africa.

The bank said the road project will improve the quality of life of Africans through direct employment during the reconstruction period, will increase trade and reduce poverty as well as consolidate peace and security in the countries.

The reconstruction will also introduce interconnectivity of customs information between the Guinea and Sierra Leone, joint import and export controls as well as capacity building for customs administration in Guinea, the bank said.