Tanzania in conjunction with a Chinese company is set to construct a 2,561 km standard gauge railway at a cost of US$ 7.6bn. The railway line will connect the Dar es Salaam port to land-locked countries and hence enhance the economy of the country.
A Chinese consortium led by China Railway Materials (CRM) has been selected to undertake the construction of the project; this was confirmed by the Tanzanian Minister for Transport, Samuel Sitta.
10 per cent of the funds will be generated from the Chinese group and the rest will come from banks in the region.
Tanzania which aspires to become a regional transport hub in the coming years had projected to spend a whopping US$ 14.2bn in the next five years on the construction of new railway lines and upgrading of existing roads and railways. This development will enable them serve growing economies in the land-locked countries in the continent.
The country has so far signed a US$ 10bn agreement with China Merchant Holding International (CMHI) to build a new mega port and economic zone at Bagamoyo.
Construction of the new railway line is expected to commence this month in June.
