The Cross-River bridge (408 m), linking Cameroon to neighbouring Nigeria, was completed almost a year ago and information from the Cameroon Ministry of Public Works (MINTP) holds that the bridge will be inaugurated on November 3, 2022.

To this end, the Minister of Public Works, Emmanuel Nganou Djoumessi, chaired a preparatory meeting on 19 October in Yaoundé, in the presence of the Governor of the South West region, the SDO of Manyu and representatives of other ministries. MINTP is yet to indicate what role the Nigerian authorities will play in the announced inauguration ceremony of this bridge, the construction of which started in 2017.

Leading into Eyumodjok (Manyu division in the South-west region of Cameroon plagued by security issues since 2016), the bridge over the Cross River was financed to the tune of over 21 billion CFA francs by Cameroon, Nigeria, and cushioned by funds from the African Development Bank and the European Union. This bridge, according to MINTP, is part of the programme for transport facilitation on the Bamenda-Mamfe-Abakaliki-Enugu corridor which is a part of the Lagos-Mombassa trans-African highway.

The bridge over the Cross-river could boost trade between Cameroon and Nigeria, which is currently crippled by the security crisis in the North West and South West regions. Owing to this situation, the Ministry of the Economy reports that between 2015 and 2019, the value of trade between the two countries dropped from CFAF 15.6 billion to CFAF 2.9 billion, a landmark 81% decline. The same source states that this downturn was observed both for exports (-68.9%) and imports (-85%).

Source: Business in Cameroon