NACALA PORT  TO  REDUCE TRANSPORTATION COSTS

President Dr Lazarus Chakwera has hailed Mozambique for rehabilitating and expanding the  Port of Nacala one of the infrastructure schemes which will enhance trade and regional integration and help landlocked countries such as Malawi and Zambia reduce the cost of transporting imports and exports.

Dr Chakwera was speaking at the Port of Nacala in Mozambique during the inauguration of the port which has been rehabilitated and expanded to a tune of $300 million courtesy of Japan International Cooperation Agency – JICA among other partners.

Among other things, the project involved the rehabilitation of a 190-meter container dock and a 120-meter fuel wharf, the rehabilitation of 13000 square meters of container storage yard, the installation of fuel handling equipment and the purchase of container handling equipment…and all landlocked countries such as Malawi and Zambia will benefit from the facility through reduced distance.

After completion of the works, Nacala Port can now handle 250 thousand containers from the 100 thousand it used to take at one time and now Port of Nacala has a handling capacity of 10 million tonnes of goods per year.

Speaking at the inauguration, host President Filipe Nyusi assured the two neighbours Malawi and Zambia that they are free to maximize the use of the facility. Nyusi also asked Malawi and Zambia to invest in road and rail infrastructure to facilitate transportation of goods from the port of Nacala.

President Dr Lazarus Chakwera of Malawi hailed the project as a game changer in the export and importing of goods for all land-locked neighbouring countries and thanked the government of Mozambique for the vision to deliver a project which is a true meaning of regional integration.

“We thank President Nyusi and the government for this project which will go a long way in reducing some challenges encountered in importing and exporting goods. The Nacala corridor will significantly reduce charges that businesses suffer.” Said Dr Chakwera.

Chakwera went on to challenge the trio of Malawi, Zambia and Mozambique to cooperate in other areas such as energy among many areas of cooperation.

While thanking Mozambique, President Hakainde Hichilema of Zambia expressed commitment to completing the Mchinji – Chipata rail line to maximize the benefits of the new port, especially on fuel imports to Zambia.

“Let’s ensure completion of our rail line especially the Mchinji – Chipata stretch to maximize on the Port of Nacala.m,” Said President Hichilema,

During the event, the three Heads of State also performed a symbolic send-off of a train with 20 wagons carrying fuel, a move expected to stabilise the fuel situation in Malawi.

The leaders also signed a Memorandum of  Understanding on the management of the port to remove non-trade barriers to make Nacala Corridor more competitive and facilitate easy importation and exportation of goods for the three neighbours.

Nacala Port was established in 1951 and is located in the southern part of Bengo Bay in Nacala, however, Malawi’s exports and imports through the port only account for eight percent but it is expected that imports and exports volumes will increase with the rehabilitated rail line in Malawi and the rehabilitation of the Port of Nacala.