Development Effectiveness Report 2024

CHAPTER 3

THE STATE OF ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD

Sub-Saharan Africa is the region with the lowest road network density in terms of surface area, followed by Latin America and the Caribbean (Figure 5).

Too many people across the world, particularly in rural areas, lack access to reliable roads. 7 Sub-Saharan Africa is the region with the highest degree of isolation, where only about one-third of the population live within 2 km of an all-season road. 8

Sub-Saharan Africa is also the region with the highest number of countries with fewer than 1 km of paved roads per 1,000 people (Figure 6). 9

Figure 5: Road density by surface area (km paved roads/surface area)

North America

318

South Asia

142

Europe and Central Asia

99

East Asia and Pacific

67

Middle East and North Africa

19

Latin America and the Caribbean

18

Sub-Saharan Africa

17

Source: World Bank Group Prosperity Data 360

0

Figure 6: Km of paved roads per 1,000 inhabitants

1

6

0-1

1

1-5

6-10

1

11-15

2

16-20

21+

Source: Calculations based on road network data from World Bank Prosperity Data 360 and population data from CIA World Factbook

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