Ivory Coast's Main Airport To Get Upgrade

Ivory Coast's main airport in the commercial capital Abidjan is to get a CFA40 billion franc (USD$67 million) makeover to boost it as a regional hub.

Ivory Coast has become one of Africa's rising stars since emerging from a 2011 civil war, with annual economic growth of around 9 percent attracting foreign investment.

Félix Houphouet-Boigny Airport expects 1.75 million passengers this year, up from a record 1.5 million last year, Aeria's Abdoulaye Coulibaly said.

"We are aiming to invest around 40 billion CFA francs over the next three years to offer quality service, because the number of passengers is increasing each year," he said, adding the funds will go towards tarmac and terminal upgrades.

Coulibaly said Aeria was also preparing a CFA140 billion franc project to build an extension to the terminal that would more than triple capacity to 8 million passengers per year by 2022. Work was expected to begin in two years, he said.

The US Transportation Security Administration last year cleared Abidjan to handle direct flights between the two countries, something Ivory Coast had been seeking for 15 years.