The identification and prioritisation of key Strategic Corridors in Africa, and the focus on their development, is an opportunity to deepen the Africa-EU partnership. Strategic Corridors can also support territorial development in rural and urban areas through the deployment and maintenance of reliable networks and services, including digital and energy-related infrastructure. The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) and the Directorate-General for International Partnership (DG-INTPA) have initiated a project on ‘Strategic Corridors and Urban Systems in Africa’ (CUSA) with the aim to contribute to this endeavour.

The objective of the first phase of the CUSA project (CUSA-1) was to support the selection of a limited number of Strategic Corridors in Africa that are of interest to the EU to:

1. Facilitate intra-African and Africa-Europe trade and improve sustainable, efficient, safe and secure connectivity between the two continents;

2. Develop diversified value chains in Africa that can benefit both African and European industries.

Starting from the existent systems of corridors, each potential corridor and it’s zone of influence were characterised based on a set of 32 criteria, covering Economy and investments, Biodiversity and sustainability, Connectivity and logistics, and Human development, cities and security.

Based on results of the characterisation, the corridors have been assessed under four scenarios reflecting EU-Africa policy priorities and strategies related to: I) Strengthening Europe-Africa connectivity; II) Sustainable growth and jobs; III) Green Deal; IV) Human development, peace and security.

As a result, 11 Strategic Corridors were identified and recommended for prioritisation. The decision to support them in the frame of the Global Gateway Africa – Europe Investment Package has been formalised at the sixth European Union-African Union Summit, held on 17-18 February 2022.

The 11 corridors are:

West Africa:

1. ABIDJAN-LAGOS (Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria)

2. ABIDJAN-OUAGADOUGOU (Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso)

3. PRAIA/DAKAR-ABIDJAN (Senegal, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Côte d’Ivoire, Cabo Verde

4. COTONOU-NIAMEY (Benin, Niger)

Central Africa

5. LIBREVILLE/KRIBI/DOUALA-N’DJAMENA (Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon, Chad, São Tomé and Príncipe

6. DOUALA/KRIBI-KAMPALA (Cameroon, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda

East Africa

7. DAR ES SALAAM-NAIROBI-ADDIS ABABA-BERBERA/DJIBOUTI (Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Somalia, Djibouti)

8. MOMBASA-KISANGANI (Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of the Congo)

Southern Africa

9. MAPUTO-GABORONE-WALVIS BAY (Mozambique, South Africa, Eswatini, Botswana, Namibia

10. DURBAN-LUSAKA Southern Africa: South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia

North and East Africa

11. CAIRO-KHARTOUM-JUBA-KAMPALA (Egypt, Soudan, South Sudan, Uganda)

The 11 recommended corridors would benefit from NDICI investments, in the form of multi-country Team Europe Initiatives shaped along the Strategic Corridors themselves.