Lobito — Zambia's Transport minister, Museba Frank Tayali, said at the weekend in Benguela Province that his government is working hard to create infrastructure to support the Lobito Corridor.
Without mentioning the exact type of infrastructure, he told the press that the Copperbelt region located in northern Zambia is where essential minerals are to be found and from where they'll be transported through the Lobito Corridor.
According to him, on 14 December this year, the Zambian Parliament ratified a document related to the Lobito Corridor, which he considered to be an important milestone for integration and involvement in the project.
Museba Tayali thanked Angola for having organised the first meeting of the Committee of Ministers and taken the first step towards financing it.
Issues such as the exchange and mobility of goods and services, rest stations for lorry drivers, as well as the improvement of border crossings along the Corridor to facilitate the transition, were taken into account, according to the minister.
He said that his country's focus is not only on exchanging minerals, but also other products, such as agricultural products, which will be brought to the Corridor.
On the other hand, the representative of the Congolese minister of Transport said that the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is rehabilitating and building infrastructure to support the Lobito Corridor.
He recalled that since the 1960s, the Corridor has always been the main export route for minerals from the DRC to Europe and the Americas.
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He emphasised that it is a moment of general satisfaction for the people of his country.
In turn, Adilson Gonçalves, Benguela's deputy governor for technical affairs and infrastructure, representing governor Luís Nunes, thanked the participants for attending and emphasised the importance of the first meeting of the Committee of Ministers.
The government official said that this agreement is considered to be an expression of great commitment and investment for the development of the countries involved to increase fluidity of trade exchanges within the framework of the continental and international free trade zone.
"The Lobito Corridor will boost exports from our countries, especially agricultural and mineral products to the world, at more competitive prices, with greater fluidity, speed and safety in rail and sea transport," he said.
TC/CRB/MRA/jmc
