The African Development Bank (AfDB) is considering funding a railway line that will connect Zambia to the Angolan port of LobitoThe African Development Bank (AfDB) is considering funding a railway line that will connect Zambia to the Angolan port of Lobito
The railway line will spur regional and international trade, especially for bulk cargo such as Zambian copper whose production is projected to increase to over a million tonnes by 2015.
“The project is key Zambia’s economic development and important for regional integration aimed at improving infrastructure development and reducing transportation costs,” said AfDB president Donald Kaberuka.
Angola is currently rehabilitating the Benguela railway line. Zambia is interested in the construction of the railway line to link it to the Benguela Rail system that leads to the Port of Lobito on the Atlantic Ocen.
The Port of Lobito is a strategic infrastructure for the export of Zambian goods destined for Europe and America.
The projects that are likely to receive the Bank’s support include the construction of Kazungula Bridge.
Kazungula Bridge, which is a joint venture between Zambia and Botswana, is expected to be jointly financed by AfDB and Japan although the two governments are required to fund certain components.
The bridge project is part of the North-South Corridor which links Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) through Botswana and the Port of Durban in South Africa.
By Nawa Mutumweno
