AFRICA: The governments of Angola and Zambia have signed concession agreements with Africa Finance Corp paving the way for construction of an 800 km rail link between the two countries.
The agreements covering the financing, construction, ownership and operation of the new railway were signed at a ceremony in New York on September 24, alongside the United Nations General Assembly. The event was hosted by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, as the project is backed by the Biden Administration’s G-7 Partnership for Global Infrastructure & Investment.
The Zambia Lobito Rail Project envisages the construction of a line through Zambia’s northwestern provinces, connecting Angola’s Benguela Railway at Luacano with the Zambia Railways network at Chingola. This would provide the shortest route for export and imports, linking key mining regions, agricultural clusters and businesses in northern Zambia and the southern DRC to the port of Lobito. AFC CEO Samaila Zubairu noted that exports would include ‘copper and other critical minerals for the global energy transition’.
The ‘world class’ railway is expected to deliver economic benefits valued at approximately US$3bn across the two countries, reduce annual carbon emissions by approximately 300 000 tonnes per year and create more than 1 250 jobs across the construction and operation of the line.
Once completed, the line would form a key element in a trade corridor stretching across Africa from the Atlantic coast to the Tanzanian port of Dar es Salaam on the Indian Ocean, facilitating global and intra-African trade and promoting investment in agriculture, health, digital infrastructure, mining, and electricity supply.
Last year AFC was appointed lead developer for the project, working in collaboration with the US government, the European Union, the African Development Bank and the governments of Angola, DR Congo and Zambia.
The signing of the concession agreements was accompanied by the release of a US$2m grant from the US Trade & Development Agency to fund comprehensive environmental and social impact assessments for the project, and ensure that it aligns with international best practices and environmental standards.
‘We are pleased to partner with Africa Finance Corp on this transformative project which will deepen our nation’s role as a regional logistics hub, boosting trade not only with Zambia but with the rest of the world’ commented Angola’s Minister of Transport Ricardo Viegas d’Abreu. His Zambian counterpart Frank Tayali added that the ‘groundbreaking’ project was ‘an important milestone in our efforts to modernise infrastructure, enhance the competitiveness of our economy, and improve the livelihoods of our people.’
