There is currently one railway in Niger, built between 2014 and 2016 between

Niamey Niamey () is the capital and largest city of Niger. Niamey lies on the Niger River, primarily situated on the east bank. Niamey's population was counted as 1,026,848 as of the 2012 census. As of 2017, population projections show the capital di ...

and Dosso by the French

Bolloré Bolloré SE () is a French conglomerate headquartered in Puteaux, on the western outskirts of Paris, France. Founded in 1822, the company has interests in Vivendi, international freight forwarding, oil storage and pipelines in France, solid state ...

conglomerate. The objective was to connect Niamey to the rail network in

Benin Benin ( , ; french: Bénin , ff, Benen), officially the Republic of Benin (french: République du Bénin), and formerly Dahomey, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the north ...

and thus to the coast. But competing commercial interests by several parties resulted in endless litigation and the connection to Benin never materialized. So the 145 km Niamey-Dosso stretch now lies orphaned and unused, with the tracks ending in the middle of nowhere some 6 km south of Dosso. After several years of neglect the tracks are already damaged to such an extent in some places, that they have become unusable. At the Niamey Terminus Station, the rails are kinked to such an extent by the summer heat that the train would not be able to leave the station (see image). A rail connection from Maradi into

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

is being considered.

Maps

UN Map

Built, but not operational

* Niamey terminus station (

, capital of

Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languagesNiamey, airport station. * Guesselbodi station. * Kouré station. * Kodo station. *

Birni N'Gaouré Birni N'Gaouré (or Birnin Gaouré) is a town located in the Dosso Region in southwest Niger. A town of over ten thousand, it is the departmental seat of Boboye Department, and is the main town of the fertile farming region in which it is locat ...

station. * Koygorou station. * Dosso station.

Built and operational

in Benin

* ( gauge) *

Cotonou Cotonou (; fon, Kútɔ̀nú) is a city in Benin. Its official population count was 679,012 inhabitants in 2012; however, over two million people live in the larger urban area. The urban area continues to expand, notably toward the west. The ci ...

(0 km) - port in

Parakou Parakou is the largest city in northern Benin, with an estimated population of around 206,667 people, and capital of the Borgou Department. Administratively the commune of Parakou makes up one of Benin's 77 communes. Since 2015, its mayor is Sour ...

(438 km) -

railhead In the UK, railheading refers to the practice of travelling further than necessary to reach a rail service, typically by car. The phenomenon is common among commuters seeking a more convenient journey. Reasons for railheading include, but are ...

in north

Proposed

From Parakou (Benin), to Dosso (Niger)

* Ndali * Kandi * Guéné *

Lama-Kara Lama-Kara is the full name for the town of Kara in the Kara Region of north Togo Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the eas ...

Malanville Malanville is a city, arrondissement and commune in the Alibori Department of northeastern Benin, located across the River Niger from Niger. It is known as a centre of cross-border trade and has a major market. Malanville is also a centre for rice ...

* border (574 km) near Niger River bridge. * Gaya

From Nigeria

* ( gauge *

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 between ...

- junction (0 km) (capital

Kano State Kano State (Hausa: ''Jihar Kano''جىِهَر كَنوُ) (Fula: Leydi Kano 𞤤𞤫𞤴𞤣𞤭 𞤳𞤢𞤲𞤮𞥅 ) is one of the 36 states of Nigeria, located in the northern region of the country. According to the national census done in ...

) *

Dutse Dutse is the capital city of Jigawa State in northern Nigeria. It is home to Federal University, Dutse established in November 2011. In addition to the Federal University Dutse, there is also a Research Institute for Date Palm (Sub-Station) and s ...

Kazaure Kazaure is an Emirate and a Local Government Area of Jigawa State, Nigeria. Its headquarters is in the ancient city of Kazaure. Early history Kazaure was said to have been first settled by a group of Hausa (also known as Habe) hunter clan under t ...

Daura Daura is a town and Local Government Area in Katsina State, northern Nigeria. It is the spiritual home of the Hausa people. The emirate is referred to as one of the "seven true Hausa states" (Hausa Bakwai) because it was, (along with Biram, Kan ...

Katsina Katsina, likely from "Tamashek" eaning son or bloodor mazza enwith "inna" otheris a Local Government Area and the capital city of Katsina State, in northern Nigeria.

(state capital

Katsina State Katsina State ''(Hausa: Jihar Katsina) (Fula: Leydi Katsina 𞤤𞤫𞤴𞤣𞤭 𞤳𞤢𞥁𞤭𞤲𞤢)'' is a state in the northwestern geopolitical zone of Nigeria. Katsina State was created in 1987, when it split from Kaduna State. Today, K ...

) *

Jibia Jibia, (or Jibiya), is a town and Local Government Area (LGA) in Katsina State, northern Nigeria. The population of the LGA was approximately 125,000 as of 2003, and the area is 1037 km2. The postal code of the area is 822. Jibia sits alo ...

* border *

Maradi, Niger Maradi is the second largest city in Niger and the administrative centre of Maradi Region. It is also the seat of the Maradi Department and an Urban Commune. History Originally part of Katsina, a Hausa state, it became independent in the 19th c ...

(capital Maradi Department (248 km) *

- national capital. * . * (existing narrow 1067mm gauge) *

Zaria Zaria is a metropolitan city in Nigeria which at the present time lies within four (4) local government areas in Kaduna state; it happens to be the capital city to the Zazzau Emirate Council, and one of the original seven Hausa city-states ...

- junction (0 km) *

Gusau The city of Gusau, located in northwestern Nigeria, is the capital of Zamfara State. It is also the name of the state's Local Government Area (LGA), which has an area of ² and a population of 383,162 as of the 2006 census. The area's postal ...

- (capital

Zamfara State Zamfara (Hausa: Jihar Zamfara Fula: Leydi Zamfara 𞤤𞤫𞤴𞤣𞤭 𞤶𞤢𞤥𞤬𞤢𞤪𞤢) is a state in northwestern Nigeria. The capital of Zamfara state is Gusau and its current Governor is Bello Matawalle. Until 1996, the area was ...

) * Kauran Namoda

From Côte d'Ivoire via Burkina Faso

Abidjan Abidjan ( , ; N'Ko script, N’ko: ߊߓߌߖߊ߲߬) is the economic capital of the Ivory Coast. As of the Demographics of Ivory Coast, 2021 census, Abidjan's population was 6.3 million, which is 21.5 percent of overall population of the country, ...

* (border) *

Burkina Faso Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the ...

* (border) *

"Connecting Niger to Côte d'Ivoire"
(railwaysofafrica.com)

References

External links

{{Railway stations in Africa