EIB provides €22m finance to Pont de Rosso bridge in Senegal

European Investment Bank (EIB) has signed a finance contract worth €22m with the Government of Republic of Senegal to support new Pont de Rosso bridge over the Senegal River.

Situated on a major regional artery, the bridge will complete a missing link of the trans-African corridor as well as bolster the economy along the Tangier-Lagos and Algiers-Dakar corridors.

European Investment Bank vice-president Ambroise Fayolle said: "The EIB is very proud to finance this project, which illustrates the priority we are giving to sustainable development.

“Once completed, the Pont de Rosso bridge will contribute to the development of transport activity along trans-African corridors. It will improve people’s living conditions and integration whilst creating new job opportunities for young people.”

The bridge is expected to cut down travel times as well as boost mobility of the people and goods between Mauritania and Senegal, which in turn will contribute to the social as well as economic development of both the countries.

Once the bridge is opened to traffic, the commercial activities in the region are expected to get a boost, especially as construction of this bridge will also be supplemented by the development of nearly 60km of rural tracks, thereby facilitating access to agricultural areas.

In addition to the financial support, EIB is providing its technical, environmental and financial expertise to this project alongside the AfDB and the European Union (EU).

In 2016, EIB financed a total of €190m worth projects in sectors such as transport, water, energy.

Under the Cotonou Agreements, EIB has financed a total of €21.5bn on projects across the African continent, of which €7.8bn is in the sub-Saharan African region.