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Zambia has secured an initial €60 million to rehabilitate the Kapiri Mposhi-Ndola section of the national railway line as government steps up efforts to modernise transport infrastructure and strengthen regional trade.
Presenting the 2027 national budget in Parliament on Friday, Finance and National Planning Minister, Situmbeko Musokotwane, said government was also engaging other partners to mobilise funding for the rehabilitation of the remaining sections of the Zambia Railways network.
Under the proposed arrangements, Zambia Railways Limited will serve as the railway infrastructure manager, while freight and passenger train services will be opened to private sector operators through an open access model.
“Government, working with the private sector, is modernising border operations to speed up trade processing, improve cargo monitoring and reduce smuggling,” Musokotwane said.
He said government was also developing strategic transport corridors that would double as economic corridors, providing infrastructure to support increased production and exports.
“The Grow Zambia Agenda must be led by expansion in exports,” the minister said.
Among the corridors being pursued is the Lobito Corridor, which links Zambia to Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo through road, rail and border infrastructure, with the potential to facilitate access to wider regional and international markets.
Musokotwane said government would encourage producers of identified export commodities, as well as other potential exporters, to invest along these corridors.
He said works had commenced on the rehabilitation of the Mutanda-Kisasa-Mwinilunga-Jimbe road and the Kasempa turnoff to Kabompo via Mufumbwe road.
Construction of the Lobito railway line is expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2027, while rehabilitation of the Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA) line was also under way, alongside plans to construct a dry port at Kapiri Mposhi.
“To improve operational efficiency and ensure sustainable infrastructure financing, Government will repeal and replace the Railways Act Cap 453 of 1984,” he said.
Beyond rail infrastructure, government plans to construct, upgrade and rehabilitate 787 kilometres of roads across the country.
Musokotwane said Mansa and Mfuwe airports were expected to be completed in 2027, while works on Nakonde Airport would continue.
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