In an about-turn for Zimbabwe, Zambia and Botswana have agreed to allow the country to join the Kazungula bridge project across the Zambezi River in phase two of the works.
According to reports by African News Agency (ANA), the three regional presidents - Zimbabwe’s Emmerson Mnangagwa, Ian Khama of Botswana and Edgar Lungu of Zambia – recently carried out an inspection of the progress on the multi-milliondollar Kazungula Bridge in Kasane.
Not only did they agree to Zimbabwe’s future involvement, but all three countries agreed to set up a one-stop border post at Kazungula in Zambia’s southern province.
The odd shape of the bridge – resembling an overstretched halfmoon with its belly elongating into the Namibian territory so as to avoid Zimbabwean territory – has an interesting history.
A Botswana government official told ANA that there had been a dispute with Zimbabwe, which was then under Robert Mugabe, and he had refused passage of the bridge through his territory.
“It was supposed to be 600 metres long, but we had to institute design alterations and have its belly stretch into Namibia, which agreed to the arrangement, before curving into Zambia. The changes to the bridge design saw it stretching to 923 metres,” explained the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
