The board of directors of multilateral development finance institution the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) approved a $255-million loan from the African Development Fund (ADF) and a $10-million grant from the multi-donor special fund Rome Process/Mattei Plan Financing Facility in August, to support Zambia’s participation in the Lobito Corridor rail development initiative.

The Lobito Corridor is intended to create a direct, fast freight route from the mineral-rich Copperbelt region in Central Africa to the Atlantic Ocean seaboard at Angola’s Port of Lobito.

The AfDB’s support forms part of a coordinated effort with multilateral and bilateral partners to advance an integrated economic corridor approach.

Through this first phase of financing, the AfDB is helping to establish the critical foundations for a corridor model that connects transport infrastructure with trade facilitation, agriculture, energy, urban development and institutional capacity.

By linking Zambia’s Copperbelt and other mineral-rich and agricultural regions to Angola’s Atlantic Port of Lobito, the Lobito Corridor will provide a more efficient export route, reduce logistics costs, strengthen supply-chain reliability and unlock new investment opportunities across Zambia and the wider Southern African region, the AfDB says.

Investing in Women Too

The Lobito Corridor

project is expected to create about 500 permanent jobs and 5 000 temporary jobs across construction, logistics, one-stop border post operations and professional services.

At least 300 people will be trained in rail and road construction and maintenance, and 50 people in corridor management, logistics, climate safeguards, monitoring and evaluation, with particular attention being given to women and youth, the AfDB says.

“The Lobito Corridor is more than a transport investment: it is a platform for regional integration, industrialisation and economic transformation,” says AfDB infrastructure and urban development department director Mike Salawou.

Under the project, about 550 km of railway infrastructure in Zambia will be constructed and 105 km of the Mwinilunga-Jimbe road, in Zambia’s North-Western province, will be upgraded.

In addition, there will be trade facilitation measures, institutional support and capacity building in the project’s portfolio.

Notably, the AfDB’s financing will be implemented in phases, with the current approval representing the first tranche under the sixteenth replenishment of the ADF amounting to about $255-million, with additional resource mobilisation envisaged to reach up to $500-million in subsequent phases.

The operation will enhance access to capital through co-financing and private sector participation, create jobs and develop skills.