Chinese firms Geiger International and China Harbor Engineering Company (CHEC), are now set to rehabilitate Zimbabwe’s busy highway after reaching an agreement with the government. According to the government officials the two companies are expected to spell out the framework for the Beitbridge-Harare-Chirundu rehabilitation and dualisation. This is one of the busiest highway is Zimbabwe’s transport sector and once completed its expected to streamline the economy of the country significantly more so in the busiest North-South Corridor that directly links landlocked Zimbabwe and Zambia with access to the Indian Ocean ports of Durban and Richards Bay in South Africa.
The ministry of transport added that the visibility study for Zimbabwe’s busy highway projects was completed back in 2013 and they had already established that $1.3 billion was required to carry out the projects and an additional $883 million would be needed for the link between the capital and Chirundu on the border with Zambia, bringing the total project cost to nearly $2.2 billion.
Early on June the government under the ministry of Transport had announced that the CHEC would be the main contractor while Geiger International an Austrian firm based in China, was named as the financier of the project. The Geiger International an Austrian firm based in China and is expected to fund the entire project. According to the Transport Minister Jorum Gumbo the agreement will see the project start in few weeks time as the funds are already available for the same. “We have been holding talks and now we are ready to see the projects start and we believe it will change the face of country’s transport sector once it’s completed” he added The minister added that the country is committed towards improving the transport sector which is very key to the economy of Zimbabwe. Road infrastructure development in Zimbabwe has been stagnant in the wake of international suctions. Once a thriving nation with bespoke roads and superb airport infrastructure, today construction activities in the country are near dead.
Extract from constructionreviewonline.com
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