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Corridors without Borders in West Africa

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  • Lebrand,Mathilde Sylvie Maria

Abstract

This paper estimates the welfare gains from upgrading several major regional corridors inWest Africa. It uses a quantitative economic geography framework with trade within and across countries andmobility of people within countries to assess the economic impacts of the reduction in trade costs from road and borderinfrastructure investments. The findings show that the upgrade of Dakar-Lagos regional road corridor brings sizableeconomic benefits relative to investment costs, with a benefit-cost ratio estimated around 3. The economic benefitsof road corridor upgrades are doubled and more widely spread when combined with measures to reduce current massive borderdelays. The benefits are negligible for Nigeria, but large for small fragile states (Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, and SierraLeone). The gains are highest for corridors connecting large economies, and smaller and more fragile countries gainproportionally more from accessing larger markets. Finally, regional investments, including border time reductionpolicies, will reduce spatial inequality in the whole region but might increase inequality in some countries.

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  • Lebrand,Mathilde Sylvie Maria, 2021. "Corridors without Borders in West Africa," Policy Research Working Paper Series 9855, The World Bank.
    • Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:9855
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    Keywords

    International Trade and Trade Rules; Transport Services; Inequality; Ports & Waterways;
    All these keywords.

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