Statizoid

Roads, total network (km) by country

Total road network includes motorways, highways, and main or national roads, secondary or regional roads, and all other roads in a country. A motorway is a road designed and built for motor traffic that separates the traffic flowing in opposite directions.

Countries reporting
47
Highest
362,099 km
South Africa
Lowest
320 km
Sao Tome and Principe
Median
20,278 km
Years covered
21
1990–2010
Data points
619

What the numbers show

Roads, total network (km) is currently reported for 47 countries. The highest value is 362,099 km in South Africa; the lowest is 320 km in Sao Tome and Principe.

The median across all reporting countries is 20,278 km, and the mean is 45,436 km.

The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 1,132.

Over the past decade 35 countries rose and 11 fell. The largest increase was in Ghana (up 177.9%), and the largest decrease in Namibia (down 33.6%).

Roads, total network: full country ranking

#Country LatestYear 10-year changeTrend
1 South Africa 362,099 km 2000 up 9.3% rising
2 Nigeria 193,200 km 2004 up 12.8% rising
3 Democratic Republic of Congo 153,497 km 2004 down 2.2% flat
4 Egypt 137,430 km 2010 up 48.8% rising
5 Algeria 113,655 km 2010 up 9.3% rising
6 Ghana 109,515 km 2009 up 177.9% volatile
7 Zimbabwe 97,267 km 2002 up 6.8% rising
8 Tanzania 90,807 km 2009 up 3.0% flat
9 Libya 83,200 km 2000 up 12.4% rising
10 Zambia 66,781 km 2000 up 89.2% rising
11 Kenya 61,947 km 2010 down 3.1% flat
12 Morocco 58,395 km 2010 up 1.3% flat
13 Angola 51,429 km 2000 down 29.2% falling
14 Ethiopia 44,359 km 2007 up 86.1% rising
15 Guinea 44,348 km 2003 up 47.8% rising
16 Namibia 44,138 km 2010 down 33.6% falling
17 Chad 40,000 km 2006 up 19.8% rising
18 Madagascar 37,476 km 2010 down 24.8% falling
19 Mozambique 30,331 km 2009 down 0.2% rising
20 Cameroon 28,857 km 2008 down 15.9% rising
21 Botswana 25,798 km 2005 up 40.8% rising
22 Mali 22,474 km 2009 up 48.8% rising
23 Somalia 22,100 km 2000 up 6.2% flat
24 Central African Republic 20,278 km 2010 down 16.6% falling
25 Tunisia 19,418 km 2010 up 2.2% falling
26 Niger 19,267 km 2010 up 90.8% rising
27 Congo 17,000 km 2006 up 32.8% rising
28 Malawi 15,451 km 2003 up 9.1% rising
29 Senegal 14,785 km 2010 up 1.4% flat
30 Rwanda 14,008 km 2004 down 2.0% falling
31 Sudan 11,900 km 2000 up 14.2% rising
32 Togo 11,652 km 2007 up 54.9% rising
33 Sierra Leone 11,300 km 2002 down 3.2% flat
34 Mauritania 10,628 km 2010 up 38.7% rising
35 Liberia 10,600 km 2000 up 13.7% rising
36 Gabon 9,170 km 2007 up 13.5% rising
37 Lesotho 5,940 km 2000 up 16.7% rising
38 Eritrea 4,010 km 2000 up 12.6% rising
39 Gambia 3,742 km 2004 up 43.9% rising
40 Eswatini 3,594 km 2002 up 21.4% rising
41 Guinea-Bissau 3,455 km 2002 down 17.7% falling
42 Djibouti 3,065 km 2000 up 6.5% flat
43 Equatorial Guinea 2,880 km 2000 up 12.9% rising
44 Mauritius 2,066 km 2009 up 8.2% rising
45 Cape Verde 1,350 km 2000 up 22.7% rising
46 Seychelles 508 km 2010 up 36.2% rising
47 Sao Tome and Principe 320 km 2000 — flat

Regions and income groups

Aggregates are excluded from the country ranking above so that a region can never outrank a country.

About this data

Indicator
Roads, total network (km)
Unit
km
Source
International Road Federation, World Road Statistics and electronic files, except where noted
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
51 places, 619 data points, 1990–2010
Last refreshed

Total road network includes motorways, highways, and main or national roads, secondary or regional roads, and all other roads in a country. A motorway is a road designed and built for motor traffic that separates the traffic flowing in opposite directions.