TZ, Zambia, China ink deal to revive TAZARA

CHINA: TANZANIA, Zambia and China have signed a contract worth 1.4 billion US dollars (approximately 3.44tri/-) aimed at reviving and rehabilitating the Tanzania-Zambia Railway (TAZARA), which has for decades, served as a vital trade artery between East and Southern Africa.

The agreement, signed in Beijing, China, earlier on Monday seeks to revitalise the railway through the procurement of 34 new locomotives, 16 additional passenger coaches and 760 freight wagons.

Speaking after the signing ceremony, Tanzania’s Minister for Transport, Prof Makame Mbarawa, said that the rehabilitation of TAZARA will bring significant benefits, including enhanced cargo transportation from the Port of Dar es Salaam to Zambia and other Southern African Development Community (SADC) member states.

Prof Mbarawa said that the improvements will reduce transport costs and time, stimulate regional trade, attract investment, increase employment and income for citizens and strengthen diplomatic and economic ties between Tanzania, Zambia and China.

He extended his gratitude to the three governments for their solidarity and commitment to restoring TAZARA to its former standards.

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The Minister also commended Chinese President Xi Jinping, Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan and Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema for their crucial roles in supporting this important milestone towards the railway’s revival.

Zambia’s Minister for Transport and Logistics, Frank Tayali, underscored that the agreement had been signed at a timely moment. Once the upgrades are complete, he said the railway is expected to operate more efficiently and expand its capacity to transport both passengers and cargo for the countries that depend on its services.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of China Railway Construction Corporation Limited (CRCC) Dai Hegen also outlined other successful projects the company has undertaken across the African continent, reinforcing China’s commitment to infrastructure development in the region

The single-track TAZARA stretched to a distance of 1,860 kilometres long. The rehabilitation will include upgrading major workshop and maintenance of the existing line.

Last year, China signed an initial agreement to revitalise the 50-year-old TAZARA railway, coinciding with the United States’ financial support for a competing transport corridor for minerals known as Lobito, which connects to an Angolan port.

TAZARA provides a crucial alternative to the logistics bottlenecks in South Africa that have hindered copper and cobalt exports. The Tanzania-Zambia Railway, also known as the Uhuru Railway or TAZARA, is a bi-national railway that connects the Southern Africa regional transport network to the Eastern African seaport of Dar es Salaam.

It provides both freight and passenger transportation services within and between Tanzania and Zambia. Constructed from 1970 to 1975, TAZARA was a turnkey project financed and supported by China. Upon completion, it became the longest railway in sub-Saharan Africa.

The project was also the largest single foreign aid initiative undertaken by China in the early 1970s, costing approximately 406 million US dollars at the time, which is equivalent to around 3.29 billion US dollars today.

TAZARA has historically been a cornerstone of regional economic activity. Its revitalisation is anticipated to significantly enhance trade, create jobs and foster development across East and Southern Africa.