Cameroon approves US$407M loan for Douala-Bangui corridor upgrade
The road is part of the Bangui-Garoua-Boulaï axis linking the capital to the Cameroonian border.
CAMEROON – President Paul Biya has authorized the signing of a €347.5 million (US$407 million) loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development for the Douala-Bangui corridor.
This authorization clears the way for Cameroon to sign the loan agreement.
According to the World Bank, the corridor accounts for more than 80% of the Central African Republic’s foreign trade.
Program structure and road sections
The financing forms part of the first phase of a World Bank program approved on June 12, 2026. The full program is valued at US$1.12 billion, while Phase 1 totals US$525 million.
Of that amount, the World Bank approved US$425 million for Cameroon, including US$407 million from the IBRD and US$18 million from the International Development Association.
The Central African Republic was allocated US$90 million from IDA, with another US$10 million earmarked for CEMAC.
On the Cameroonian side, preparations include reconstructing the Yaoundé-Edéa section of National Road No. 3, which covers 165 kilometres, including a 62.9-kilometre stretch between Pont Ndoupé and Carrefour Edéa.
The programme includes road safety measures, modern weigh stations and a system for sustainable corridor maintenance.
In the Central African Republic, World Bank documents identify the roughly 79-kilometre Baoro-Bossemptélé section as a rehabilitation priority. The road is part of the Bangui-Garoua-Boulaï axis linking the capital to the Cameroonian border.
For regional logistics operators, the US$407 million loan marks the start of a multi-year upgrade programme covering road reconstruction, weigh stations and maintenance systems on a route where freight can take weeks and delivery schedules remain unpredictable.
The corridor also anchors Cameroon’s role as the transit gateway to landlocked Central African markets, while the parallel Pointe-Noire-Brazzaville-Bangui-N’Djamena project positions the region for a second Atlantic connection.
Barriers beyond road conditions
The World Bank identifies cumbersome customs procedures, informal checkpoints, fragmented transit rules and a non-competitive trucking market as regulatory and operational barriers along the corridor.
Freight-sharing rules between Cameroonian and Central African transporters divide cargo between carriers from the two countries under the bilateral transport system, limiting competition and reducing the extent to which lower road-transport costs are passed on to traders and consumers.
Moreover, according to the World Bank, freight shipments to inland capitals can take weeks, and high transport costs contribute to price volatility in the Central African Republic.
Finally, for logistics operators and importers serving Bangui, the practical question is whether transit times become predictable, not just shorter.
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