The government will present, in March, the construction project for the railway connecting the north and south of the country, valued at 7.2 billion dollars, announced on Friday, January 30, by the Minister of Transport, João Matlombe.
“Last year, we finalized the assessment for the variation of the north-south railway. The government, once it approves the concept, will make a statement, but we believe that by the end of the rainy season [March] we will also make an announcement,” said the Minister of Transport and Logistics, João Matlombe, during the reopening of the country’s main road, which had been closed for two weeks.
According to the minister, the rainy season highlighted the importance of combining infrastructure, namely road, rail, and maritime, to avoid dependence on land transport.
“We have completed all preliminary studies and are now in a position to go to the market to mobilize resources (…) for the railway connecting the north and south,” the minister added.
Matlombe also stated that the transport sector has completed studies on the alternative road project to National Road One (N1), as a way to ensure that the country faces rainy seasons with “some normalcy.” The first phase of the north-south railway will have a length of approximately 1,500 kilometers.
The President of the Republic, Daniel Chapo, announced on Friday the resumption of traffic on the N1, the main land route, previously suspended due to closures caused by rain and flooding, promising further efforts to support the victims.
“Before our visit to Niassa and before our trip to Cabo Delgado, we visited National Road 1 on the section from 3 de Fevereiro to Incoluane to see the work being carried out. What we did was leave a clear recommendation to the contractor to increase equipment and working hours, and today we have the honor to announce that the connection on the N1 has been restored,” stated Daniel Chapo.
Chapo had assured on Tuesday (27) that traffic on the N1 would be restored within a maximum of two weeks, noting that the rains continue to affect Mozambican families and promising further efforts to mitigate their impacts.
Source: Lusa
