This is a list of planned, or proposed, high-speed rail projects by country. Although a number of countries have conducted preliminary feasibility studies, many lines are eventually shelved or postponed due to high costs; only a few nations are building high-speed rail lines. Planned (or proposed) lines are separated here from lines under construction, and some countries have both. High-speed rail is public transport by rail at speeds over 200 km/h (125 mph).
Africa
Integrated network
In 2013, the African Union (AU) passed Agenda 2063: a 50-year development trajectory which includes a continental free trade zone, a common passport, an end to armed conflict, an annual African economic forum, a space program, a Great African Museum, establishment of e-universities, and a high-speed rail network. Africa has the lowest rail density of any inhabited continents, with 16 countries lacking rail altogether (especially in Central Africa); most rail lines are single-track freight lines operating at 30|km/h, traveling from ports to industrial zones such as mines and forests.
The AU signed a memorandum of understanding with China in 2014 for the 30– to 50-year development of a continental rail system connecting all African capitals with modern rail technology, facilitating interoperability by using one gauge instead of the current nine. The network's goal is to facilitate intra-African trade and lower shipping costs. Its initial timeline for 2022 was the completion of preparatory work; only 12.3 percent of the network was studied, however, largely due to funding constraints. Completed pre-feasibility studies include the Cotonou-Niamey-Ouagadougou-Abidjan Railway, which would cost US$5.022 billion to build and rehabilitate and US$866 million to equip. The Djibouti-Libreville corridor was estimated to be long and cost $5.277 billion, and the Dakar-N'Djamena-Djibouti corridor was estimated to be in length and cost $14.05 billion. It has not yet been specified which rail lines would operate at , , or .
A master plan for 2033 envisions of rail construction with the following projects. The first three are accelerated pilot projects under study or construction. The objectives by 2033 are to connect 16 landlocked countries to seaports and connect regions with trans-Africa corridors. The 2043 master plan would expand the network to connect Africa's political and economic capitals by rail.
Accelerated pilot projects: Kigali-Dar Es Salaam: Kampala-Bujumbura: Walvis Bay-Windhoek-Gaborone-Johannesburg:
2033 master plan: Nairobi-Mombasa: Bamako-Ouagadougou-Niamey-N'Djamena-Khartoum: Addis Ababa-Djibouti: Pointe Noire-Brazzaville-Kinshasa-Bujumbura: Johannesburg-Maputo: Pretoria-Durban: Algiers-Abuja-Lagos: Lobito-Lusaka: N'Djamena-Bangui-Brazzaville-Luanda: Addis Ababa-Nairobi-Dodoma-Lusaka-Gaborone: Khartoum-Addis Ababa Luanda-Windhoek: Mbeya-Lilongwe-Harare-Johannesburg-Maseru: Lilongwe-Nacala: Lamu-Juba: Bangui-Juba: Juba-Kampala:
2033 pilot projects: Tunis-Algiers-Casablanca: Douala-Bangui Kampala-Nairobi Dakar-Bamako Asmara-Addis Ababa: Lusaka-Beira Alexandria-Khartoum Ouagadougou-Abidjan: Niamey-Cotonou:
2043 master plan: Alexandria-Benghazi-Tripoli-Tunis: Casablanca-Laayoune-Nouakchott-Dakar: Dakar-Banjul-Conakry-Monrovia-Abidjan-Accra-Lagos-Douala: Yaoundé-Bata-Libreville: Mogadishu-Addis Ababa Windhoek-Cape Town: Maseru-Cape Town: Tripoli-N'Djamena:
Algeria
In 2012, ANESRIF began building a double-track electric high-speed railway reaching speeds of from Oued Tlélat (Oran) with stops in Sidi Bel-Abbès and Tlemcen. It was 80-percent completed by 2021, with 129 viaducts totaling and three tunnels totaling . The project was scheduled for completion in 2019, but faced delays due to problems with land acquisition and COVID-19 and was scheduled to open by the end of 2021. The administration began work on an extension from Tlemcen to Akkid Abbas (Maghnia) on the Moroccan border in 2015, a total of designed for speeds of . It was only seven percent completed by fall 2021, largely due to land-acquisition controversies in Tlemcen and Mansourah. This section will contain Africa's largest viaduct: the , M'dig Viaduct over the Isser River (near Aïn Fezza), with a tunnel into downtown Tlemcen and a renovated train station. The project is estimated to cost .