AfDB lends Morocco $234m for rail expansion project

Wait 5 sec.

The African Development Bank (AfDB) said on Thursday it had ​approved a loan of €205 ‌million ($234 million) to help Morocco extend its high-speed rail network and ​upgrade rail infrastructure along one ​of the country’s busiest transport ⁠corridors.The loan is aimed at ​boosting capacity and operational performance along ​the Kenitra-Marrakech railway corridor, which carries a large share of Morocco’s passenger and ​freight traffic, the bank said ​in a statement.Morocco plans to invest $10 billion to expand ‌its ⁠intercity and urban rail networks, including the construction of a high-speed line to Marrakech, ahead of ​the 2030 ​FIFA ⁠World Cup, which it will co-host with Spain ​and Portugal.The new high-speed line ​will ⁠start from Kenitra on the Atlantic coast and run 430 km (267 ⁠miles) ​south to Marrakech, ​serving Rabat and Casablanca along the way.