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Back in the 70s, the Tazara railway was built as a beacon of African unity, linking Zambia’s Copperbelt to Tanzania’s coast. It was bold, revolutionary—and it crumbled. The railway decayed, leaving Zambia’s minerals trickling slowly down dusty roads, barely making it to the coast
Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan of Tanzania, alongside Xi Jinping and Hakainde Hichilema, witnessed the signing of a monumental US$1 billion agreement to revive the Tazara Railway. The agreement, which marks a turning point not just for the railway, but for the Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA), a rising giant in East African trade.
TPA is the architect of a new future for Tanzania. The once-sluggish port of Dar es Salaam has been revamped, retooled, and transformed into a logistics machine. TPA is gunning for a monopoly over regional trade corridors. 70 percent of Zambia’s Copperbelt exports already flow through Dar es Salaam, and it’s not just about copper anymore. Agricultural exports—maize, wheat, and cotton—are streaming through too, making the port indispensable.
Back in the 70s, the Tazara railway was built as a beacon of African unity, linking Zambia’s Copperbelt to Tanzania’s coast. It was bold, revolutionary—and it crumbled. The railway decayed, leaving Zambia’s minerals trickling slowly down dusty roads, barely making it to the coast.
But with USD 1 billion from China now breathing life back into Tazara, this grand railway is being revived. It will once again link Zambia’s mining heart to the world, via Dar es Salaam Port.
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This revival is critical for TPA’s long game. With the Dar es Salaam Maritime Gateway Project, a $440 million facelift for the port, TPA is positioning itself for a future where it handles 30 million tons of cargo annually by 2030.
Zambia is playing a key role in this plan, doubling its trade volume with the port to 2 million tons in 2022, and in 2023-24. Zambia moved 2,248,505 metric tons through Dar es Salaam, a 14 percent increase from 2022-23.
