By Chikondi Chimala, in Beijing, China
Beijing, September 5: Mana: President Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera on Thursday hailed the impact of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) which he described as a tool for transforming economies in Malawi and other African countries.
Chakwera said this when he addressed a High-Level Meeting on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) Forum that was hosted by Chinese President Xi Jinping after the official opening of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).
The president described the BRI as an ambitious and noble initiative aimed at lifting people and nations in the Global South from poverty to prosperity. He emphasized that it represents a dream come true for developing countries and called for dedicated efforts to realize this vision through the allocation of funds to transport infrastructure development projects.
He called on China to also work with with regional blocs including the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) and the Common Market of Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) which have numerous regional transport infrastructure projects further saying that his government would like to focus on corridors that pass through Malawi: The Nacala and TAZARA corridors.
“Malawi aims to revitalize the TAZARA line and has proposed extending a railway line from the TAZARA line through Malawi to connect to the Nacala Corridor. This would enhance intra-African connectivity, opening up vast areas of Africa to global commerce and industry, including other land-locked countries in the SADC region.
“The Malawian Government is currently rehabilitating the Beira railway line and has already started the rehabilitation of 72kms of rail from the Mozambique border using local resources. The plan is to rehabilitate the entire 201 km rail from Marka to Limbe, making it operational again up to Beira port in Mozambique,” said Chakwera.
He also disclosed that Malawi plans to upgrade the 272 km Rumphi-Nyika-Chitipa Road, which would enhance connectivity and open up agriculture, mineral, and tourism-rich districts, benefiting Malawi and its neighbouring countries of Zambia and Tanzania.
The president said by investing in the outlined critical infrastructure projects, Malawi has the opportunity to bring about lasting economic prosperity for itself and establish a powerful legacy of the BRI that will benefit generations to come.
The president called on the need for the BRI to also prioritise mass digital and energy connectivity calling for the deliberate focus on facilitating skills and knowledge transfer along the Silk Road which he said has potential to reach 75% of the global population.
The president said China is the world’s leader in infrastructure development having successfully executed numerous major transport infrastructure projects beyond the BRI, significantly impacting the lives of those touched by them and boosting our economies, “As such, Malawi fully endorses China’s quest to be the partner of choice in infrastructure development in the Global South.
