On monday, the government of Ivory Coast commissioned the construction of two major projects which is a metro and the extension of the international airport in Abidjan, the country’s economic capital. 

At the commissioning of the project, the French Economy Minister Bruno le Maire was in attendance and also signed agreements including credit for the project.

Speaking at the launch ceremony, the French Economy Minister said: “The purpose of my visit is obviously to mark the concrete launch of the completion of major infrastructure projects in Abidjan”.

He added that the metro is one of the largest infrastructure projects in Africa as it is an ambitious and social project that will be of benefit to millions of people in Abidjan.

In 2019, some groups of French consortium consisting of Bouygues Travaux Publics, Alstom, Colas Rail and Keolis were selected to build the first metro line in Abidjan.

The cost of the work is estimated at 1.36 billion Euros which France committed to cover with  a mix of loans from the French Treasury and private financing guaranteed by the French government.

Despite the delay experienced during construction, the government hopes that the metro will be fully operational by 2025.