Chinese Government provides RMB 557 million grant for Third Bridge Construction Project (Linked to Record ID#58006, #58007, #135)

Project narrative

On August 26, 2015 , the Chinese Government and the Government of Niger signed an Economic and Technical Cooperation Agreement (ETCA), which committed grant funding and funding from an interest-free-loan for the Third Bridge Construction Project (as captured via Record ID#58006 and #58007). In total, the Chinese Government reportedly committed RMB 557 million for this project, although not all of these funds were drawn from the ETCA signed on August 26, 2015. This project involves the construction of a two-way, four-lane bridge over the Niger River in Niamey. The bridge, which is known locally as the General Bridge Seyni Kountché Bridge and the Third Bridge, is 3.607 kilometers long, of which the main bridge is 928m long, the Chahe bridge is 126m long, and the connecting line is 2.553km long, with four lanes in both directions. It will connect Goudel to the Lamordé district and the northern and southern parts of the city of Niamey. China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) is the construction responsible for implementation. A foundation stone laying ceremony took place on April 6, 2017, and a groundbreaking ceremony took place on July 17, 2018. However, construction itself didn't begin until December 10, 2017. Construction was originally scheduled to last 36 months. On March 2, 2020, Niger's President Issouf, accompanied by Ambassador Zhang Lijun and Economic and Commercial Counselor Gao Tiefeng, inspected the site. As of July 13, 2020, the project had achieved a 72% completion rate, and was expected to reach completion by September 2020. On February 18, 2021, the bridge was completed and opened for traffic.