In the aftermath of the Second World War, Côte d’Ivoire’s road network was in a deplorable state, perhaps due to the intensity of heavy traffic during the war and the general lack of maintenance. Major road construction programmes were also launched in all the colonies. These programmes coincided with (or were perhaps connected to) an idea that had spread around the 1950s, originating from the British colonies, according to which the well-being of a colony’s population was closely linked to the size and condition of its road network.