The Zimbabwe transport and infrastructural development ministry and the Chirundu Border Consortium (CBC) have reached financial close on the upgrade of a key commodity transit route on the border with Zambia.
The establishing of financing arrangements by the ministry and private-sector firms in the CBC to develop the Chirundu Border Post will pave the way for construction work on a key transit route for copper, cobalt, fertilizers and mining supplies moving between central and southern Africa, the partners said this week.
The Chirundu crossing is a critical link on the North-South Corridor, connecting the Zambia-Democratic Republic of Congo Copperbelt with ports in South Africa and Mozambique. The route is widely used to export copper and cobalt concentrates and refined metal, as well as imports of mining equipment, reagents, fuel, sulphur and fertilizers.
The upgrade intends to reduce congestion and transit delays at one of the region's busiest border crossings by replacing ageing infrastructure and introducing new processing and operational systems. Frequent traffic problems such as border queues and bottlenecks have increased logistics costs and delivery times for commodities moving through the corridor.
The project will improve freight flows, strengthen regional trade connectivity and enhance the efficiency of cargo movements between southern African ports and inland markets, Zimbabwe's transport and infrastructural development ministry said.
The ministry did not disclose the final value of the financing package. Zimbabwe's cabinet previously estimated the project would require investment of around $66.8mn and would operate under a 20-year concession arrangement with private investors.
The project is currently led by Safaga International, which was also involved in the modernisation of the Beitbridge border post between Zimbabwe and South Africa, alongside investors including South Africa-based Strategic Partners Group. Standard Bank of South Africa and Stanbic Bank Zimbabwe are among the financial institutions backing the development.
