The Trans-Sahara Highway or TAH 2, formally the Trans-Saharan Road Corridor (TSR),The Trans-Saharan Road Corridor Towards an Economic Corridor: Commercializing and Managing the Trans-Saharan Road
UNCTAD/TCS/DTL/INF/2022/2],

United Nations Conference on Trade and Development UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) is an intergovernmental organization within the United Nations Secretariat that promotes the interests of developing countries in world trade. It was established in 1964 by the United Nations General Assembl ...

(UNCTAD), p. 14. and also known as the African Unity Road, is a transnational

infrastructure Infrastructure is the set of facilities and systems that serve a country, city, or other area, and encompasses the services and facilities necessary for its economy, households and firms to function. Infrastructure is composed of public and pri ...

project to facilitate trade, transportation, and regional integration among six

African countries This is a list of sovereign states and dependent territories in Africa. It includes fully recognised states, states with limited or zero recognition, and dependent territories of both African and non-African states. It lists 56 sovereign states ...

: Algeria, Chad, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, and Tunisia. It runs roughly 4,500 km (3,106 mi) north to south across the

Sahara The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...

desert from

Algiers Algiers is the capital city of Algeria as well as the capital of the Algiers Province; it extends over many Communes of Algeria, communes without having its own separate governing body. With 2,988,145 residents in 2008Census 14 April 2008: Offi ...

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

on the

Mediterranean coast The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eu ...

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

on the Atlantic coast of

West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...

; subsequently, it is sometimes known as the Algiers–Lagos Highway or Lagos–Algiers Highway. The TSR is one of the oldest and most complete transnational highways in Africa, having been proposed in 1962, with construction of sections in the Sahara starting in the 1970s. In addition to paving and widening existing roads, the corridor includes thousands of kilometres of cable as part of the "Trans-Saharan Fibre Optic Backbone", a multinational project to increase high-speed telecommunications across the region. The physical infrastructure is to be complemented by policies relaxing cross-border trade and migration and developing logistical services. The TSR is one of nine Trans-African Highways (TAH) being developed by

United Nations Economic Commission for Africa The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA or ECA; , CEA) was established in 1958 by the United Nations Economic and Social Council to encourage economic cooperation among its member states (the nations of the Africa, African contin ...

(UNECA), the

African Union The African Union (AU) is a continental union of 55 member states located on the continent of Africa. The AU was announced in the Sirte Declaration in Sirte, Libya, on 9 September 1999, calling for the establishment of the African Union. The b ...

(AU), the

Islamic Development Bank The Islamic Development Bank (, abbreviated as IsDB) is a multilateral development finance institution that is focused on Islamic finance for infrastructure development and located in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. There are 57 shareholding member st ...

(IsDB) and the

African Development Bank The African Development Bank Group (AfDB, also known as BAD in French) is a multilateral development finance institution, headquartered in Abidjan, Ivory Coast since September 2014. The AfDB is a financial provider to African governments and ...

(AfDB) with the support of the

Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa The Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA) (Banque Arabe pour le Développement Economique en Afrique) (المصرف العربي للتنمية الاقتصادية في أفريقيا) is a development bank owned by Arab League t ...

UNCTAD UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) is an intergovernmental organization within the United Nations Secretariat that promotes the interests of developing countries in world trade. It was established in 1964 by the United Nations General Assembl ...

, and other regional and international organizations. As of 2022, the majority of the highway has been complete, with the central section between Algeria and Niger still being paved.

Status

Overall features, length and condition

The Trans-Sahara Highway has a length of about 4,500 km of which about 98% has been paved. It passes through three countries:

Niger Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state Geography of Niger#Political geography, bordered by Libya to the Libya–Niger border, north-east, Chad to the Chad–Niger border, east ...

and

. However, an additional 3,600 km of linked highways to

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

Mali Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...

Chad Chad, officially the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North Africa, North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to Chad–Libya border, the north, Sudan to Chad–Sudan border, the east, the Central Afric ...

and

Mauritania Mauritania, officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, is a sovereign country in Maghreb, Northwest Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Western Sahara to Mauritania–Western Sahara border, the north and northwest, ...

are considered by planners to be integral to the Trans-Sahara Highway network. The six member countries represent 27% of the continent's GDP and 25% of its population. The 1,200 km of the highway in Nigeria are part of that country's national paved road network and include nearly 500 km of four-lane divided sections, but highway maintenance is frequently deficient and parts of the road may be in poor condition. About half the highway, over 2,300 km, lies in Algeria and is mostly in good condition, with the newest sections south of

Tamanrasset Tamanrasset (; ), also known as Tamanghasset or Tamenghest, is an oasis city and capital of Tamanrasset Province in southern Algeria, in the Ahaggar Mountains. It is the chief city of the Algerian Tuareg. It is located at an altitude of . As of ...

. From the Algerian border town of

In Guezzam In Guezzam (Arabic: إن قزام, ''lit.'' Spring (hydrosphere), springs of Guezzam; Berber language, Berber spelling: Gezzam) is a town and Communes of Algeria, commune that is the capital of In Guezzam Province, Algeria, on the border with Nig ...

to 'Point Zero' on the Niger border is now sealed, with a sand berm extending to either side to disrupt migrant trafficking. Niger has 985 km of the highway and in 2023 some 900 km had been asphalted, although parts are in poor condition in the south. Further details are given below. Another crossing of the Sahara was proposed for the Tripoli–Cape Town Highway (Trans-African Highway 3) but this route requires a great deal more construction, faces problems of instability and lawlessness in southern Libya and northern Chad, and is not likely to stimulate trade to the same extent as TAH 2. It may be decades away from completion. Two other Trans-African Highways cross the Sahara, but at its edges. In 2005 the Cairo–Dakar Highway (TAH 1) in the west along the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

coast became the first fully sealed highway crossing the Sahara from north to south (barring a few kilometres in No Man's Land between Morocco/Western Sahara and Mauritania). The Cairo–Cape Town Highway (TAH 4) follows the

Nile The Nile (also known as the Nile River or River Nile) is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa. It has historically been considered the List of river sy ...

in the east, the previous long unpaved sections in Sudan, Ethiopia and Kenya have since been significantly improved. The highway from Nanyuki in Kenya to Moyale at the Ethiopian border is an excellent tarmac road. The roads in Ethiopia and Sudan are all tarmac of good quality as of October 2020. Announced in 2018, by 2019 a third trade route opened between

and

, and following pandemic delays, in 2024 opened officially to non-freight traffic, but has yet to be classified. Established during the French colonial era as a link between Algiers with

Dakar Dakar ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Senegal, largest city of Senegal. The Departments of Senegal, department of Dakar has a population of 1,278,469, and the population of the Dakar metropolitan area was at 4.0 mill ...

to avoid what was then the

Spanish Sahara Spanish Sahara (; ), officially the Spanish Possessions in the Sahara from 1884 to 1958, then Province of the Sahara between 1958 and 1976, was the name used for the modern territory of Western Sahara when it was occupied and ruled by Spain bet ...

on the Atlantic, it was closed in 1963. Currently the tarmac ends at Hassi Abdelah, the Mauritanian frontier post 75km south of

Tindouf Tindouf () is the main town, and a Communes of Algeria, commune in Tindouf Province, Algeria, close to the Algeria–Mauritania border, Mauritanian, Algeria–Western Sahara border, Western Saharan and Algeria–Morocco border, Moroccan borders. Th ...

. It resumes some 790 kilometres later near Zouerat, passing through Ain Ben Tili and Bir Moghrein. In Mauritania the most used route today does not follow the 'N1' track depicted on many current maps. This is based on 1950s colonial-era mapping and in most places, satellite imagery shows a piste no exists along this line.

Route

The cities and countries served, and status of the road are as follows.

In Algeria

*Algiers to Ghardaia, 625 km, paved, in good condition *Ghardaia to

, 1,291 km, paved in good condition *Tamanrasset to

at the Niger border, 400 km, paved. *In Guezzam to Assamaka, the Niger border post: 28 km sealed to 'Point Zero', thereafter soft sand tracks, possible in high clearance vehicles. See also: Algeria–Niger border

In Niger

*Assamaka to

Arlit Arlit is an industrial town and capital of the Arlit Department of the Agadez Region of northern-central Niger, built between the Sahara Desert and the eastern edge of the Aïr Mountains. It is 200 kilometers south by road from the bord ...

, 210 km. In 2023 less than 100 km of marked track remain, followed by new tarmac southeast to Arlit *Arlit to

Agadez Agadez ( Air Tamajeq: ⴰⴶⴰⴷⴰⵣ, ''Agadaz''), formerly spelled Agadès, is the fifth largest city in Niger, with a population of 110,497 based on the 2012 census. The capital of the eponymous Agadez Region, the city lies in the Sahara ...

, 243 km, paved in 1980 and probably recently repaved. The OPEC Fund said March 19, 2021 that the final stretch of road was "soon to be completed." *Agadez to

Zinder Zinder (locally, ''Damagaram''), formerly also spelled Sinder, is the third largest city in Niger, with a population of 235,605 as by the 2012 census. It is situated east of the capital Niamey and north of the Nigerian city of Kano. History ...

, 431 km, paved.Michelin Map 741, 2014 *Zinder- Magaria at the Nigerian border, 111 km, paved but in poor condition. See also: Niger-Nigeria border

In Nigeria

* Niger border to Lagos via

Kano Kano may refer to: Places *Kano State, a state in Northern Nigeria *Kano (city), a city in Nigeria, and the capital of Kano State ** Kingdom of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between the 10th and 14th centuries ** Sultanate of Kano, a Hausa kingdom betwee ...

, Kaduna, Oyo,

Ibadan Ibadan (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and most populous city of Oyo State, in Nigeria. It is the List of Nigerian cities by population, third-largest city by population in Nigeria after Lagos and Kano (city), Kano, with a total populatio ...

: 1,193 km of which 127 km is in good condition and 1,066 km 'fair'. In summary, although ageing paved sections will always deteriorate and require maintenance, currently less than 100 km of the route east of Assamaka remains a marked sandy track. The Trans-Sahara Highway via the central Sahara may well soon be sealed.

Links to other transnational highways

The Trans-Sahara Highway intersects with: * Cairo–Dakar Trans-African Highway in

* Trans-Sahelian Highway in

, Nigeria *

Trans–West African Coastal Highway The Trans–West African Coastal Highway or TAH 7 is a transnational highway project to link 12 West African coastal nations, from Mauritania in the north-west of the region to Nigeria in the east, with feeder roads already existing to two landlock ...

* Lagos–Mombasa Highway in Lagos

References

Sources

Overland; Trans Sahara Routes".
Retrieved 27 January 2025.
African Development Bank/United Nations Economic Commission For Africa: "Review of the Implementation Status of the Trans African Highways and the Missing Links: Volume 2: Description of Corridors".
August 14, 2003. Retrieved 14 July 2007. {{Trans-African Highway network 2 Roads in Niger Sahara