Germany‘s KfW IPEX-Bank, a project and export finance development bank, has signed up for its second major project in Ghana in under a year, with a 72 million euro loan for the construction of the Bolgatanga-Bawku-Polimakom highway.

The road project loan agreement was approved by the Ghanaian Parliament in late March. The debt package also features HSBC, which is lending 68 million euros to the project.

The 102.55 kilometre road starts from Bolgatanga municipality in the far north of the country, close to the border with Burkino Faso. It initially runs as a dual carriageway for two kilometres, and then continues as a single carriageway through Zebilla and Bawku, ending at Polimakom.

Ghana’s parliamentary finance committee noted in its project report that initial construction work had begun in 2016 with financing originally to come from its road fund.  However, it was eventually unable to release the necessary funds and the project subsequently stalled. The report also said the revised project was expected to be completed within 17 months from the date of commencement.

The government has stated that good road infrastructure is a critical facilitator for the rapid socio-economic development of the country.

Last May , KfW IPEX-Bank also announced its support of  the expansion of Tamale Airport in northern Ghana with a loan of US$80 million. The loan is covered by government export credit insurance provided by UK Export Finance.

The contractor is the British subsidiary of QGMI, a Spanish-owned international construction company. The project was commissioned by the Ghanaian government and includes the construction of new passenger and multi-purpose terminals.

Tamale is one of the fastest-growing cities in western Africa. Northern Ghana is an important region for fruit and vegetable farming. The new multi-purpose terminal is also intended to facilitate the export of agricultural products like shea butter, cashew nuts and mangoes.

The Ghanaian government and the International Monetary Fund have described the project as one of the most important in terms of the country's industrialisation.