Enhancing the Climate Resilience of Africa’s Infrastructure: The Roads and Bridges Sector
Africa’s development is highly dependent on an adequate, reliable road system. But climate change is expected to take a heavy toll on the region’s transport infrastructure, especially roads and bridges. To address this challenge, a new World Bank study helps planners determine the most cost-effective and appropriate adaptation pathway under a variety of climate scenarios.
Africa’s future depends on its roads
An adequate and reliable road network will be key to Africa’s economic and social development. Good-quality road connections can greatly expand access to jobs, markets, schools, and hospitals. For rural communities, in particular, a road is often an essential lifeline that links isolated villages to economic opportunities and services.
The low density and poor condition of the existing road infrastructure are a serious impediment to the region’s growth. Currently, only 1/3 of rural inhabitants live within two kilometers of an all-season road–the lowest accessibility in the developing world. Moreover, insufficient funding of routine maintenance accelerates the deterioration of the network, leaving many roads in poor condition.
As part of a broader effort to expand and upgrade its transport network, Africa will see substantial investment in road infrastructure over the next decades. When combining both regional initiatives and country-level masterplans, capital investment in the road sector will average about $4.6 billion a year, for a total of $78 billion through 2030.
photo credit: Rod Waddington