Firms actively involved in China’s railway sector have expressed interest to help Zambia improve her railway sector to create a ‘super link’ across the country.
The firms would also be willing to look at the possibility of setting up an intra-town speed train service in Lusaka.
Transport and Communications Minister Christopher Yaluma said in an interview the two companies that had expressed interest were China Railway Construction Company and china Railway Engineering Company.
The two firms are involved in capital intensive projects undertaken in China.
China Railway had also been involved with the construction of the 1,800 km Tazara railway line and had highly skilled staff and expertise.
“We talked to them and will continue to look at other people that can help revamp our infrastructure. All provincial airports will be upgraded to international standard to compete favourably in the tourism industry as all areas of country will be easily accessible,” Mr Yaluma said.
He said to link Zambia with its neighbours by rail was a challenging and ambitious programme. The railway sector had been run down but revamping it had fringe benefits such as extending the life span of the road network as the mining industry would utilise the road as opposed to the current situation.
The other benefit of having a working railway system was the reduction in costs of doing business.
The proposed super link will connect Durban in South Africa to Lubumbashi in DR Congo and Benguela and Lobito in Angola.
Another line would connect Mpulungu harbour which is a gateway to the great lakes region to the Tazara rail line in Kasama’s Nseluka area.
The other would extend from Kafue into Zimbabwe through to the port of Beira in Mozambique.
I am bitter for i do not want pf govt to succeed in any way.
LwAnyA I went to bots by road using my new machine readable passport.on zambian side they wrote down my particulars in a book but onthe bots side a machine read my passport
Minister Yaluma,
In case you did not know… in 24 months we are going to have Prof Chirwa’s high speed railway up and running. I will line up for the first ticket… LOL
That’s what we want not politics of insuts but let it not end on pronouncements.
Has other countries agreed to allow Zambia railways destroy their farm lands for sake of “linking” Chinese exports?
I wished to read about commuter trains between Lusaka-CB-Mongu-Mansa-Chipata-Kasama? Because those buses accidents are simply too much.
The money beig wasted on useless by-elections must be cahelled to such projects.Imagine the employment that will be created by such projects.GiVe the Chinese to build a railway to Eastern province,then you will see Engineering wonders, They will go through those hills.
The money being wasted on useless by-elections must be chanelled to such projects.Imagine the employment that will be created by such projects.Stop procrastinating and get down to work.
Capital Projects. Kaunda did that but no one later followed it up. FTJ was sangwapo, Mwanawasa was the long arm of law will visit, RB Banda corruption. With Sata we are back to Capital Projects. That is the real development and it will put money in people’s pockets.
We want implementations, not just talk!
This sounds good, but lets wait and see. At first our govt was not so keen on the Chinese, but am sure now it’s clear that we need them for some development and not for colonisation. If only they could use our people to work on those projects to create jobs for the masses, and not bring thousand of Chinese prisoners to work. Fili epo tuleya, fingers crossed.
The currnt government needs our support to govern and develop our country successfully but this does not mean that we should not criticise when wrong. Lets do so constructively and timely. the railway project is worth our support as a nation putting our political views and preferences aside.
The Chinese for example, do not politicise development programmes but the nation unites to achieve its goals. We can learn from this as Zambia in the name of ONE ZAMBIA ONE NATION………….
Sounds good
Why do you make it as if its a charity by stating that “have expressed interest to help” this will be a business transaction with a lot of money involved and those companies will know be doing it for free. We need to change our dependence mindset syndrome.
Mwanida you are very right. Jay Jay perhaps you don’t know China’s goals and strategy well enough. The Chinese wil ‘help’ because they don’t look at investment the Western way. They will initiate a project and finish it using their capital. Western companies always demand downpayments. The chinese built TAZAra on nkongole and their payment is that Now Sata can never drive them out whatever his rantings were when he was in opposition. For developing countries China is the kind of partner you want
lets build Zambia ” AGAIN” washala washala waya waya
Thats what we have waiting to hear
@ Floyd Chitalu talk is cheap. In China and else where you only hear such cheap talk when their SERIOUS Governments are consulting their people about the viability of the projects. Any one who says PF this, PF that is cheap. These are projects on the wish list. Have we done feasibilty studies to determine the viability of such projects or are we just preparing white elephants like the TAZARA and Zambia Railways? We have the Mchinji – Chipata Railways gathering enough dust and yet we feel the New ones will operate smoothly just because it is PF in power. As for prof. Chirwa’s project forget about it. It is another 90 days fallacy. You cant build such a complex project in 3 years. Continue dreaming while your hair slowly turns grey!
Cheetah Pan Kwah
Do you even have any idea what is in those concessional loan agreements or bilateral agreements Chikwanda was signing? Why on earth do you think Chinese Development Bank and China-Exim banks are facilitating these transactions? Whatever strategy and goal the Chinese firms employ it eventually costs the taxpayer and it is not free…its purely a business transaction. This is not 1964.
THESE ARE EXELLENT PLANS. EXELLENT TRANSPORT NETWORK (ESPECIALLY RAIL) ATTRACT A LOT OF VISITORS TO A COUNTRY WHO IN TURN COME TO SPEND THEIR MONEY IN THAT PARTICULAR COUNTRY. SO, ZAMBIA WILL BE ATTRACTING A LOT OF VISITORS FROM ABROAD AND OVERSEAS WITH MONEY TO SPEND IN ZAMBIA. IN TURN ATTRACT EVEN MORE INVESTORS DUE TO EASY OF DOING BUSINESS.
Lovely !
Expanding the railway network will Link Zambia to many ports which will serve as outlet and entry points of goods in the country. The country will have more ports rather than just relying upon the port of Dar where theft of goods is so rampant.
BOYI CHILUFYA! I KNOW YOU KNOW ME BUT YOU PRETEND NOT TO. YOU ARE MY MULAMU, BUT I NEED TO REMIND YOU THAT YOU HAVE A VAST KNOW HOW TO RUN A COUNTRY. YOU WERE IN UNIP AND MMD FULL TIME. YOU KNOW THE PROS AND CONS OF IT ALL AND I SAY SOME OF US WHO SAY THINGS THAT ARE NOT WORTHLESS, FORGET THATS SOCIETY MWABA IFIPUBA AND GOOD SEED. BUT GET CRACKING YOUNG MAN AND DO THE JOB YOU CLAIMED YOU CAN DO. God bless you as you fight a good fight.