Chipata-Mchinji rail line: Towards regional growth
ZAMBIA, Malawi and Mozambique are fast cruising towards a more integrated growth triangle with the launch of the Chipata-Mchinji rail line. The rail line now holds a more plausible leap towards a focused trade system that should quickly feed into the chemistry of economic growth.
The three countries are clearly tracking the highest levels of integration with the launch of the Chipata-Mchinji rail line that now straddles across three countries to set marks for a faster, efficient and improved trade system.
The three countries launched the rail line on August 27 after decades of on-and-off construction works due to various challenges ranging from lack of resources and harsh rainy conditions that at times caused suspension of works.
The Mchinji railway project was initiated in the late 1970s between Zambia and Malawi to provide a shorter route to the port of Nacala in Mozambique but winding challenges have stood on its way since then.
It was to be an essential gateway to landlocked Zambia and Malawi from the sea for imports and exports to the eastern coast of the African continent. But challenges outweighed that desire.
For the SADC region, this is the third major infrastructure development linking the landlocked countries of Malawia and Zambia to other countries in the last five years.
Apart from the one-stop border post at Chirudu and the Mwanawasa Bridge that links Zambia to the Democratic Republic of Congo(DRC), Zambia is constructing another one-stop border post at Kasumbalesa that also borders DRC.
The launch of the Mchinji rail line comes after chains of agreements that are directly related to bilateral trade during the last decade that saw the waiver of visa requirements between Zambia and Mozambique in 2006.
The rail line, which connects to the Nacala development corridor, ushers in a new integration dispensation for Mozambique, Zambia and Malawi where trade in agricultural produce and mineral exports are directly responsible for regulating the economy at least to a level of over 70 per cent.
Rain-fed agriculture holds the major portions of the mechanics of the economies in the two landlocked countries of Malawi and Zambia but the harsh climatic conditions in the recent years have caused drought and conversely, heavy rains and flooding.
“The situation will now change and awaken Eastern Province which has so such wealth. The rail line will in the long run be joined to TAZARA passing through Petauke,” President Rupiah Banda said ahead of the launch of the rail line.
The president was joined in Chipata by Malawian President Bingu Wa Mutharika and Mozambican Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Paulo Zachula.
President Banda urged the people of Eastern Province to guard the infrastructure with great passion. The rail line now passes for the epicenter of the Zambia-Malawi-Mozambique growth triangle that was born out of an envisaged focus to create trade and investment harmony among the three SADC member states.
Mr Banda noted that the railway would facilitate landlocked Zambia easily transport its imports and exports to the east coast of the African continent through the port of Nacala in Mozambique.
According to the president, Zambia’s abundant natural resources required transportation facilities such as the railway in order to provide access to markets in the region.
Consistent with the values of a well interconnected transport and development system, the Mchinji rail line linked to the port of Beira in Mozambique and this means that the ports of Nacala and Beira are now part of Zambia’s centre for the import and export and foods, services and people from the far east.
Mr Zachula, who represented President Armando Guebuza at the launch hoped that the rail line would be used as a weapon to fight poverty through trade and increased investment that would result from an efficient transport system.
The launch of the rail line comes barely a month after a team of investors managing the Port of Beira in Mozambique and the Zambia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ZACCI) agreed that Zambian business houses should start using the Port of Beira to reduce costs because of the short distance.
The Mozambican delegation, led by Mozambican Ambassador to Zambia, Maria Mate submitted that Zambian business houses should start using their port because of the Mchinji rail line.
Reduced distance from the sea would ensure reduced cost of doing business in Zambia to a significant proportion.
The port of Beira is just 1,054 kilometres from Lusaka while Durban which is the other port that Zambians uses is about 2,381kilometres and Dar es Salaam is 1,985 kilometres away from Lusaka.
Beira executive managing director Carlos Mesquita who told the gathering that only 40 per cent of the port was being utilised after the port was abandoned many years ago when Mozambique experienced a decade long civil war.
He said efforts would be made to use the Mchinji rail line in Chipata which links Zambia to the Nacala rail line in Malawi until Mozambique.
With the return to peace, economic and political stability, Mozambique presented the best opportunity for exports and imports in Zambia.
And professor Wa Mutharika said his government would ensure that the 810 kilometre stretch in Malawi is fully rehabilitated and upgraded to provide connectivity to the port of Nacala.
Prof Mtharika said this would enable the people of Zambia and Malawi benefit from the Chipata-Mchinji railway through cheaper transportation of agricultural, mineral and manufactured products.
The Malawian president urged the private sector in the three countries to take advantage of the line to enhance trade and get involved in its operations.
President Wa Mutharia, who is also African Union chairperson urged the business community in the three countries to respond to the political will by the heads of State of the three countries shown by their attendance at the commissioning ceremony.
The challenge for Mchinji rail line is the provision of a reliable service to customers. This entails a well designed rail service in line with customer requirements and provision of the service at competitive costs, ensuring predictability and safety of the rail transport services.
The Mchinji rail line presents an opportunity of a seamless one-stop service throughout the three countries irrespective of national borders especially that traders do not require visas to transit from any of the three countries.
The Nacala Development Corridor developed around the SADC initiative that has grouped the various national railway companies to form corridor groups, with each consisting of railways that form a route carrying consistently similar flows of traffic.
SADC has a total of 11 development corridors but these have now been aligned to some of the regional economic corridors created to spearhead development by attracting investment.
Nacala Development Corridor was named after the Port of Nacala which is the deepest natural port in Mozambique which serves Nacala rail line. The Nacala terminal connects to the Central East African Railway of Malawi and now goes up to Chipata creating hope for a more integrated region.
[Times of Zambia]
