The Board of Directors of the Abidjan-Lagos Corridor Management Authority (ALCoMA) has appointed Beninois finance expert, Wilfried Lauriano do Rego, as Board Chairman for a two-year term.
The appointment was made at the Authority’s inaugural board meeting in Lagos on June 11 and 12, where members outlined strategic actions to guide the corridor’s transformation in line with objectives set by Heads of State of the five member countries.
The appointment follows the Intergovernmental Agreement, which provides for alphabetical rotation among member states beginning with Benin. Jacques Ayadji, also of Benin, automatically becomes Vice-Chairperson. Do Rego brings more than 36 years of experience as a chartered accountant and auditor, having served on the boards of several multinational corporations and financial institutions.
The 1,081-kilometre Abidjan-Lagos Corridor, estimated at 15 billion dollars, will link the capitals and major economic centres of Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin and Nigeria via a six-lane supranational highway, and is expected to become a major driver of regional economic development by 2030.
The Board set up two interim subcommittees: one to oversee recruitment of ALCoMA’s Chief Executive Officer and Legal and Corporate Secretary, and another to drive financing and oversee corridor-related risks and revenues. Chris Appiah, ECOWAS Director of Transport, was confirmed as the bloc’s representative on the Board.
In a major outcome, the Board unanimously approved the African Development Bank Group as a non-voting member, in recognition of its role financing technical studies and its designation as lead arranger for the project’s investments.
The Board approved a joint African Development Bank-ECOWAS-EBID Project Management Office, and welcomed ongoing discussions to mobilise 500 million dollars in catalytic capital from the African Development Fund’s Regional Operations envelope, alongside other financing instruments including viability gap financing and climate finance.
A roadmap for operationalising the Authority was adopted, with immediate recruitment of the CEO and key directors as priority milestones.
 has appointed Beninois finance expert, Wilfried Lauriano do Rego, as Board Chairman for a two-year term.){kind=link}