The United States is looking to identify an African cross-border infrastructure corridor to pilot and is seeking input from governments and businesses on which project to pursue, officials said in a meeting on Monday on the sidelines of the African Union Summit.
A corridor — such as the U.S.-backed Lobito corridor linking Angola, Zambia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo — connects multiple countries through rail, road, and port infrastructure to facilitate trade and supply chains. U.S. officials described the latest effort as a search for a “strategically viable first project” — effectively a proof of concept that could be scaled, according to two people present at the meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
One corridor floated in discussions would connect the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda — two countries that are in conflict — though no details were provided.
About the author
Ayenat Mersie
Ayenat Mersie is a Global Development Reporter for Devex. Previously, she worked as a freelance journalist for publications such as National Geographic and Foreign Policy and as an East Africa correspondent for Reuters.
