The World Bank approved USD 200 million in financing on 28 April 2026 to modernise Madagascar's main transport corridors. The project targets the railway between Antananarivo and Toamasina, several regional ports and the Pangalanes Canal — a waterway running along the island's eastern coast for approximately 200 kilometres. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is expected to co-finance certain components.
371 kilometres of rail and strategic ports
The financing covers rehabilitation of the 371-kilometre Tananarive–Côte Est railway, linking the capital to the port of Toamasina, Madagascar's primary maritime gateway. Construction of a dry port and multimodal logistics platform near Antananarivo will complete this corridor. The ports of Majunga (northwest) and Tulear (southwest) will also receive rehabilitation works, strengthening peripheral regions' access to national markets.
The Pangalanes Canal and regional airports
The project includes restoration of 200 kilometres of the Pangalanes Canal, a coastal waterway used by local communities for transporting goods and people. Safety and climate resilience upgrades are also planned for regional airports in Toamasina, Fort-Dauphin and Tulear, which serve strategic economic zones but remain vulnerable to tropical cyclones.
3.8 million beneficiaries, $1.1 billion total portfolio
The programme directly concerns 3.8 million Malagasy people. Combined with ongoing road projects, it brings the World Bank's total transport portfolio in Madagascar to USD 1.1 billion — an unprecedented commitment for the island. Objectives include reducing logistics costs, strengthening supply chains and improving disaster response capacity.
Why it matters
The lack of transport infrastructure is one of Madagascar's main competitiveness bottlenecks: high logistics costs raise the price of agricultural exports and constrain industrialisation. By rehabilitating the railway corridor to Toamasina — set to become East Africa's largest port — and reopening secondary waterways, this USD 200 million injection opens concrete prospects for Madagascar's agricultural, mining and industrial sectors.