Tanzania in process of completing road and railway network to link Africa

Tanzania’s President Samia Suluhu Hassan says her nation is in the process of completing road and railway networks with the goal of linking neighboring countries in East Africa and contributing to continental integration efforts.

She made the comments on Wednesday in Ghana after receiving an award for her country’s recent infrastructure projects.

However, she said Tanzania will need more external funding to finance the construction of the next phases of the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) as well as proposed highways to Kenya, Democratic Republic of Congo and Burundi, she said.

“It is my belief that with connecting the RECs (regional economic community blocs), eventually our entire continent will be connected,” she said.

“We think that the connectivity shall play a major role within the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA).

“If we must progress, Africa must produce, process and trade within its boundaries. The connectivity must begin within our national boundaries then extend within our regional economic blocs then eventually to the entire continent.”

The AfCTA is the continental treaty meant to improve intra-African trade by eliminating barriers. It will require better trade to facilitate movement of goods.

The Tanzanian leader received this year's Super Prize Great Builder- Babacar Ndiaye Trophy, an award organised by infrastructure information platform Acturoutes, with the Media for Infrastructure and Finance in Africa (MIFA), a network of African journalists specialising in road infrastructure, and sponsored by the African Development Bank.

Named after a former president of the African Development Bank between 1985 to 1995, previous winners include Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, Senegal’s Macky Sall, Abdel Fattah al-Sissi of Egypt and Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria.

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