Tanzania, Burundi sign agreement to build $900m railway and seek financing
- Tanzania and Burundi have signed an agreement to build a 282-kilometre railway, worth $900 million, linking the two countries.
- The Tanzanian Ministry of Finance said in a statement that the two East African countries are seeking financial support for the project.
- The goal of the project is to reduce transportation costs, speed up industrialization and improve the overall regional economy.
The Tanzanian Ministry of Finance said in a statement issued late on Sunday that Tanzania and Burundi have signed an agreement to build a $900 million railway linking the two countries, and it is seeking financial support for the project.
The 282 kilometer line, which will connect the western Tanzanian city of Uvinza with the Burundian political capital Gitega, is the latest step towards Tanzania’s goal of building a 2,561 kilometer railway network to boost regional trade.
The statement stated that more than one million tons of goods will be transported along the road between the two East African countries, and more than 3 million tons of minerals will be transported from Burundi to Tanzania every year.
He said the two countries are seeking funding for the project, which aims to reduce transportation costs, speed up industrialization and improve the regional economy in general.
“The Burundian finance minister and I have started looking at areas in which we can raise funds to implement this project,” Tanzanian Finance Minister Mwegolo Nshimba said in the statement.
Nshimba said financial details of the project would be released soon, but the cost would not exceed $900 million.
Tanzania will build a 156-kilometre extension from the small town of Malagarasi to Juvenza, while Burundi will build a 126-kilometre extension to Gitega, according to the statement.
Tanzania with a view to building A record 2,561-kilometer gauge line connects its main port of Dar es Salaam on the Indian Ocean with the interior of eastern and southern Africa.
In addition to links with Burundi, the railway will also connect the port with eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, Zambia, Rwanda and Uganda.
Construction is underway on the 1,219 kilometer first phase, linking Dar es Salaam to the city of Mwanza in northwest Tanzania on the shores of Lake Victoria.
last month tanzania Occurred A contract with the Turkish company Yapi Merkezi to build the last section of this line, a section of 368 km linking the city center of Makotobora with the northwestern region of Tabora.
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