ALAN PEAT AS PART of a national project, the Maputo Corridor Logistics Initiative (MCLI) has just announced the start of the Mpumalanga freight transport data bank project – which will also include cargo flows on the Maputo development corridor. “We believe it will be a very important tool to enable both the private and public sectors to plan and operate our corridors in-and-out of the province more effectively,” said MCLI chief executive officer, Brenda Horne, “and to contribute to improved transport policy formulation in the medium- and longer-term. “Several other freight logistics-related feasibility studies will also be reliant on this important data bank.” The freight transport databank is intended to provide policy makers with the widest possible information coverage and is being compiled in a user-friendly, menu-driven, electronic web format, which will initially be distributed in CD format. “The information covers all modes,” said Horne, “and provides an overview of the main transport facilities and operations in each province.” The creation of the databank for each province is intended to provide an element in the compilation of a national freight transport databank, and to meet the requirements of the national department of transport (NDoT).
