16 October 2012
Japan has signed an agreement to lend Botswana US$111m for the construction of Kazungula Bridge over the Zambezi River between Botswana and Zambia.
The loan will be combined with a similar loan to Zambia, as well as with financing from the governments of the two countries in order to implement the project.
Botswana’s minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation Phandu Skelemani said that the Kazungula Bridge was a vital artery that will allow the flow of goods from the ports in South Africa to Botswana, over to Zambia and to the rest of Central Africa.
The project, which will be located in the middle of north-south corridor from Durban in South Africa and Lubumbashi in the Democratic Republic of Congo, will also include the construction of access roads and border posts.
Construction is scheduled to begin in 2014 and take four years.
Finance (1) |