Togo is preparing to upgrade 846 kilometres of rural roads under a second phase of its Rural Roads Support Programme (PAPR), with an announced estimated cost of CFA35.54 billion. The next phase was outlined as authorities opened a rehabilitated road section on October 21 in Blitta 2, part of an effort to improve access to farming areas across the country.
PAPR 2 is in its initial stage, according to the Togolese Press Agency (ATOP). The CFA35.54 billion figure is the announced cost estimate for the planned works. It is not evidence that the money has already been spent or that the 846 kilometres have been completed.
A 32-kilometre road opens in Blitta 2
The October 21 ceremony marked the official reopening of the Atikpai-Foudjayé-Niamtougou Copé-Tcharébaou-Aféma-Sala Kopé road in Togo’s Centrale region. The 32-kilometre section was rehabilitated at a cost of CFA980 million and serves six villages. Transport and Rural Roads Minister Komlan Loukou-Kadjè attended alongside representatives of German development cooperation.
For farmers in the communities concerned, better road access is expected to make it easier to move crops to market. Officials also pointed to improved access to schools and health services. These are intended benefits of the project, not economic gains that have already been measured.
A new stage after the first programme
Launched in 2017, PAPR initially focused on cotton, coffee and cocoa-producing areas. Its first phase, whose completion was marked by the Blitta 2 inauguration, had a target of rehabilitating 935 kilometres at a total cost of CFA23.21 billion.
That initial phase was jointly backed by the Togolese government, German development bank KfW and France’s development agency AFD. The announced second phase is intended to widen rural road coverage, with another 846 kilometres planned across Togo’s regions.