Zambia to set up new dry port facility

TERRY HUTSON ZAMBIA HAS accepted an offer of a dry port facility from Namibia, aimed at enhancing the use of the Trans Caprivi Corridor linking the two countries. This was revealed at last week’s launch of the Walvis Bay Corridor Group (WBCG) branch office in Lusaka when Zambia’s Minister of Transport Abel Chambeshi said there were two sites under consideration at Grootfontein and at Walvis Bay. A study, which is being financed by UNCTAD (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development), will decide the future location of the dry port. Zambia says it intends extending the Mulobezi branch railway to link with the new railway line coming in from Namibia. Since independence Namibia has embarked on an ambitious railway building programme as well as the development of road corridors. In addition to consolidating and improving the existing railway network and infrastructure, Namibia is building new lines in the north towards Angola and northeast to Zambia. At the same time the port of Walvis Bay has been modernised and extensively dredged to accommodate vessels with a draught of up to 12.2m. Namibia has signalled its intentions – the country intends winning trade and traffic for both the port at Walvis Bay and the TransNamib railway system and to achieve this it is targeting not only countries on its northern borders but also the lucrative industrial market in Gauteng.