Côte d’Ivoire plans high-speed train to cut Abidjan-Yamoussoukro travel to 45 minutes

Côte d’Ivoire is advancing plans to become the second African nation after Morocco to operate a high-speed train. The government aims to build a 640-kilometre TGV line linking Abidjan, the economic capital, with Yamoussoukro, the political capital founded by former president Félix Houphouët-Boigny. The journey between the two cities would take just 45 minutes, compared with nearly three hours by road today. The high-speed line would continue north to serve Bouaké, the country’s second-largest city, as well as Korhogo and Ferkessédougou.

The project is still undergoing feasibility and financing studies. It is intended to boost the appeal of Yamoussoukro and relieve pressure on Abidjan, where housing costs are high. Locally, the TGV is seen as a positive step should Côte d’Ivoire decide to bid for the 2038 Fifa World Cup, though its chances are slim given that Morocco is already Africa’s host for the 2030 tournament.

Driving economic growth through transport

As part of a broad 175-billion-euro economic stimulus plan centred on transport, the government of Prime Minister Robert Beugré Mambé has included the TGV in its National Development Programme 2026-2030. Other major projects include a new Abidjan metro slated for 2029, hundreds of kilometres of new roads and highways, and the construction of two airports in San Pedro and Bondoukou. President Alassane Ouattara, in power since 2011, sees these infrastructure achievements – and perhaps soon the TGV – as symbols of the country’s economic and social modernisation.