Zambia, China, Tanzania sign $1.4B deal to revitalize 50-year-old railway

By James Kunda

LUSAKA, Zambia (AA) - Zambia, China, and Tanzania on Monday signed a $1.4 billion agreement to revive the 50-year-old Tanzania Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA) infrastructure and to purchase modern locomotives, coaches, and wagons.

The deal, which follows 18 months of negotiations, includes rehabilitation of the 1,860-kilometer (1,156-mile) railway line linking Dar es Salaam, Tanzania to Kapiri Mposhi, Zambia. The project also covers upgrades to major workshops and maintenance facilities, as well as the procurement of 34 new locomotives, 16 passenger coaches, and 760 wagons.

“The revitalization project will cost $1.4 billion, of which the initial investment will be $1.1 billion and $238 million will be re-investments,” Ernest Chanda, spokesman at Zambia’s Transport and Logistics Ministry, said in a statement released Monday in the capital Lusaka.

Zambian Transport and Logistics Minister Frank Tayali stressed that the project is not just about restoring a railway line, but represents reigniting a vision for regional integration, economic growth, and shared prosperity.

Tanzania’s transport minister, Makame Mbarawa, also highlighted the project's potential to boost both economies and create jobs.

Dai Hegen, chairman of the China Railways Construction Corporation, said that in addition to TAZARA, the firm has also been involved in the construction of a railway project connecting Ethiopia and Djibouti.

The China railways company built TARAZA between 1970 and 1976, with the infrastructure handed over to the two African nations by China free of charge.