The Chinese government has chosen China Railway to negotiate a concession of running the Tanzania-Zambia Railway line also known as Tazara which connects the neighboring country of Zambia to the port of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania. The China Railway Construction Corporation has been asked by the Tazara Railway Authority to submit its proposal. China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) had been officially introduced by the Chinese government to do the negotiations concerning the concession of TAZARA and submit their proposal by the end of the month of October 2023.
At the beginning of the month of October, it was reported by The Citizen that Tanzania was willing to put massive investments on the Tazara railway line. Tanzania entered a commitment with Zanzibar of upgrading the railway line last year as part of the measures that they will undertake in strengthening the bilateral relations they uphold.
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Tazara Railway Upgrade Project
Tanzanian president, Samia Suluhu, stressed that the 1,067mm-gauge railway needed to be upgraded so that it would deliver to full potential what was required of it by opening newer business opportunities along the railway route. The Tazara railway is foreseen to be upgraded to a standard gauge railway through a public-private partnership. An upgrade project that will foresee this come true is yet to be set up by the two countries.
This upgraded railway line is set to compete with a new one which the United States is helping Zambia to construct and will connect the copper belt in the country with an existing railway line running all the way to the port of Lobito in Angola. The Tazara railway line was front and center of President Hichilema of Zambia of Zambia visit made to the Republic of China.
