US Plots Lobito Corridor Extension to Tanzania
The Whitehouse has announced that US President Joe Biden will be in Angola from the13 to 15 October 2024. During this overseas trip, Biden will first make a stop in Germany on 10 October before proceeding to Africa.
Biden is realizing a promise he made when he ‘pivoted US back to Africa’ during the last African-US Leaders Summit. The visit follows that of Angolan President Joao Lourenco back in November 2023.
The key item on the agenda is the financing and implementation of the Lobito Corridor. Following a mission in Tanzania and DR Congo in August 2024, Helaina Matza, the Coordinator for the US Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (#PG2I) revealed some details of the plan to upgrade and extend the Lobito Corridor in order to connect the Atlantic Ocean with the Indian Ocean.
“As President Biden has said from day one of the launch of this flagship effort, the #LobitoCorridor has never just been about building infrastructure. It’s about offering high-quality, sustainable infrastructure projects that deliver lasting economic growth.”
PG2I Coordinator Helaina Matza
In addition to upgrading existing rail lines, the projects envisions adding 1,300 kilometers of railway from Zambia to Tanzania. It is worth noting that the Chinese had built the #TAZAZA railway which ends at Kapiri Mposhi back in the 1970s. There are some talks about connecting the two but from information garnered, it would appear that China is ‘reluctant to connect at this point.’
What is on the drawing board is a new section from Angola to Zambia which starts from Luacaro and end in Chingola. From Chingola to Kapira Mposhi, it is just a little over 200 km. The US and its partners have already committed USD 4 billion on the #LobitoCorridor project.
At this stage, it is not clear how the extended Lobito Corridor and TAZARA will work out. The TAZARA rehabilitation was signed at the FOCAC Summit held in Beijing in October 2024 while the Lobito Corridor plants to kick off works in 2025.
