15 Sep 2014

The construction of the Kazungula Bridge and two others at Ramotswa and Platjan is expected to facilitate trade and boost the regional economy in many ways, says Vice President, Dr Ponatshego Kedikilwe.

Speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony of the Kazungula Bridge, on September 12, Dr Kedikilwe said the bridge demonstrated Botswana and Zambia’s resolve to advance sustainable development and open avenues for improved trade, job creation and economic diversification.

Some of the expected benefits of the bridge include reduction of transit time from 36 hours to two hours; integration of the economies served by the North-South corridor, as well as increased revenue for the two countries.

The facility is expected to become a beehive of commercial activity that will connect Botswana, Zambia, Namibia and Zimbabwe and create the Upper Zambezi development zone, Dr Ponatshego said.

He highlighted that the currently used ferry could no longer cope with the modern demands of facilitating faster and easier movement of goods and people.

Through the regional integration programme, the Vice President noted, SADC member states have prioritised the construction of the bridge as a way of developing transport corridors and enhancing regional integration.

The Kazungula Bridge project coincided with an agreement between Botswana and South Africa to build two bridges across the Limpopo River, one at Ramotswa, and the other at Platjan.

“The two bridges form part of the Kazungula Bridge in terms of the regional transport corridor,” Dr Kedikilwe said.

The Minister of Transport and Communications, Mr Nonofo Molefhi said the bridge and one-stop border post were expected to unlock bilateral trade by speeding up the processing and movement of goods and people in the region as well as the creation of new opportunities that await discovery.

He said the journey started as far back as 2008 when the two governments signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to address the challenge of congestion at the Kazungula Border Post.

“The two governments noted with concern that congestion at the Kazungula Border Post resulted in the absence of fathers and husbands from their loved ones and poor hygiene and sanitation while awaiting border crossing services,” said Mr Molefhe,

The Kazungula Bridge project is co-funded by the African Development Bank, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) as well as contributions from both the governments of Zambia and Botswana.

The bridge is approximately 923 metres long and about 18.5 metres wide and will run side by side with a new railway line. The expected year of completion is 2018. Ends