Seven years later a railway is finally funded

In 2007 it was proposed to connect Mpulungu Port through Nseluka area to the Tanzania Zambia Railways Authority (Tazara) railway line – which, plus another between Mpika and Mchinji would greatly shorten the rail distance to the deepwater Port of Nacala in Mozambique.

The Mchinji connection was completed in May, but Zambia was still searching for funding for the Mpulungo line. But now, seven years after the conception, the Africa Development Bank (AfDB) has announced it will spend a total of US$100 million on the line.

Mpulungu is a town in the Northern Province of Zambia, at the southern tip of Lake Tanganyika. From Mpulungu, boats reach DR Congo, Tanzania and Burundi. The MV Liemba ferry sails from Mpulungu to Kasanga and Kigoma in western Tanzania, with connections from there to Bujumbura.

The full Mpulungu-Nacala connection will enable Zambia to tap into the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa) and Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) markets.

The bank and Zambia Railways are now to undertake a feasibility study on the Mpulungu-Tazara link.