Housing and Infrastructure Development Minister Vincent Mwale is tomorrow, Saturday October 17th expected to lead a high-powered delegation for the final inspection of the 923m long rail and road Kazungula Bridge Project (KBP).
Hon. Mwale is expected to undertake the final inspection of the Bridge together with his counterpart from Botswana Hon. Thulangano Segokgo, Minister of Transport and Communications.
The Minister’s delegation is expected to include officials from his Ministry, the Ministry of Transport and Communications, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Zambia Revenue Authority, the Department of Immigration, National Road Fund Agency and Zambia Railways together with the implementing Agency, Road Development Agency (RDA).
On Wednesday, during a joint media breakfast held jointly by the road sector agencies, RDA in Lusaka, RDA Acting Director and Chief Executive Officer Eng. George Manyele announced that the Kazungula Bridge has reached 100% completion point.
“The state of the art Kazungula Bridge has reached 100% completion and soon the Minister of Housing and Infrastructure Development Hon. Vincent Mwale will be undertaking a final inspection of the bridge.” Eng. Manyele told the media.
The 923m long rail and road Kazungula Bridge Project (KBP) is a joint multi-national project between Zambia and Botswana and has been co-financed by the two governments.
The extra dosed cable stayed bridge is located at the confluence of the Zambezi and Chobe rivers about 65km upstream the mighty Victoria Falls.
The bridge is also part of the North South corridor which carries about 85% of the regional freight traffic dominated by trading activities of Zambia, Democratic Republic of Congo and South Africa.
The Road Development Agency (RDA) and the Ministry of Transport and Communications of Botswana are the executing agencies.
The Kazungula Bridge is expected to boost trade and commerce between the two nations and also increase economic activities and prospects of other land linked countries such as Zimbabwe, Malawi, Namibia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Mozambique.
The Kazungula Bridge project consists of three packages.
Package one is the actual 923m long rail and road bridge which now stands at 100% complete while package 2 is the one stop border post on the Botswana side and package 3 is the one stop border post on the Zambian side.
The Kazungula bridge is expected to improve efficiency of transit traffic and reduction on the prolonged periods of time that local and international freight would have to spend on either side of the border.
The bridge is also envisaged to Improve Border management operations at One Stop Border Facilities on either side of the two countries.
The Kazungula Bridge has answered all the challenges imposed by the existing ferry service that has been taking 2 trucks when crossing the Zambezi River.
Does the fact that here you have two ministries duplicating the same functions show how stupid we are? One Minister Transport & Communication from Botswana will handle what bangwele babili with hefty allowances will handle. Who really cursed this nation? Is it the same devil they will be praying to on Monday?
The can’t inspect fire engineers and they think they have the brains to inspect a bridge???
A country which can not buy the correct fire engines or ambulances now thinks they can inspect a bridge….???
Who inspected the turbines the Chines installed at Kariba??
What a joke of baboons
We want that PS who wanted to have the flyover demolished to go and inspect the bridge.
That was a church minister offered the PS job by Lungu. I doubt he is an engineer
A bridge cannot be ‘state of the art.’ What does it do? Does it dance and sing? It is just a bridge. It may be beautifully designed or may be a feet of engineering over an impossible terrain, but can never be ‘state of the art.’
Just a question. Will big boats and even ships sail under that bridge? Those railings seem to be too close. Or can you give us various pictures ba LT?
Vincent Mwale is going to jump on the bridge 20 times to see it is ok.
Bridges are tricky things. Some bridges in richer countries have been known to collapse.
Excellent! If this picture is true, then it’s a beauty! For years and years, Zambians suffered with that terrible pontoon.
Well done to all participants in this essential project!
IF I SHOULD JUST HEAR ATI PEEEM !!!! From the upnd evil diaaporans. Just admire our work. We are now getting infrastructure which you have in diaspora. Pa last you will ask ati why did we run away to foreign land.
Agony is when you are sent to jail, & the whole country just moves on. And you thought you were all that.
STATE OF THE ART BRIDGE HA HA now who will pay for it ???????????
Let me tell you our Great Great Great Great Great Grandchildren
@fitwama thats not the real picture. Its a model
I wonder what the cost of the bridge was, being in partnership with our more responsible neighbours
I agree with THE SAINT. Chirundu Beit bridge- more than 100 years old. Victoria Falls bridge, designed by the same engineer who did Sydney Harbour bridge- more than 100 years old. These bridges do exactly the same thing as the Kazungula bridge over the same Zambezi river. So, what is ‘State-of-the-art’ about this? It is a beautiful bridge to look at but State of the art is not about beauty, it is about function. Please do not misuse words.
Describing the bridge as ‘a state-of-the-art’, is correct in this instance; because, looking at it as it appears in this photo, the design is innovative – quite unlike our old bridges – Kafue and Musi-o-Tunya(Victoria)falls. The designers & engineers have obviously used modern ideas & methods to construct it. Therefore, it is a state-of-the-art construction. As to whether the bridge will last a hundred years..that’s another matter; but I hope it does, because aesthetically, it’s beautiful!
@KZ as usual trying to get accolades for his PF govt. by linking such projects to themselves. The bridge idea was mooted a long time ago. In fact the project should have been completed a while back – but for the failure of the PF regime to pay it’s part of the expenses for the same – Botswana and Zimbabwe having done so. There are several other projects started by other governments which were subsequently delayed or even suspended by the PF government due to it’s corrupt underpinnings. For example, the Kafue lower gorge hydro project started by the Rupiah Banda regime. The PF regime only sees dollar signs in relation to personal pockets.
If that’s the actual picture of the bridge then it’s a BEAUTY!!!!!!!
The bridge shown here is in Sudan take or leave.
tht will dope
With Tswanas breathing on our necks, that is a possibility, thanks Botswana .
There are still some people as KZ say it ,’ pewwe’ of cause you need development you pay for it. Govt take huge loans not giving food to people but build such infrastructure for them and yes we will for it our great grand children will pay for it. Just as we paid for many development project our former leaders built
@Photoshop
You must be very dull…do you even know what Photoshop is…..doubting tommases but if that bridge was England or USA i sure you should have been jumping up and down celebrating