Participation of the private sector in the improvement of the transport infrastructure would not only facilitate its expansion, but will also diversify operations currently under the supervision of the government.
Transport Minister Dr Harrison Mwakyembe (centre) in a tete-a-tete with some of the participants at the two-day Great Rift Valley Transport Infrastructure Summit he opened in Dar es Salaam. The summit is intended as a forum for sharing knowledge and experiences, reflective thinking and inter-linking for effective action. (Photo by Mohamed Mambo)
Transport Minister Harrison Mwakyembe made the observation in Dar es Salaam, at the ongoing two-day international meeting on the Rift Valley Countries Transport Infrastructure Improvement Strategies, which ends on Thursday.
He observed that although governments and donors have been key players in the transport infrastructure development, the private sector is the major beneficiary of such facilities.
“For many years, the government and development partners financed the transport infrastructure. Time has come for the private sector to cooperate and play an active role to achieve better results,” Dr Mwakyembe said.
He said the state of infrastructure in these countries has remained unsatisfactory for quite some time, adding that the forum would offer the opportunity to the participants to share experience and expertise on how to go about improving it.
‘’Tanzania has taken an extra mile that allows massive renovation of the transport infrastructure which goes handin- hand with expansion of the Dar es Salaam Port furnished with modern work tools,” he said.
Dr Mwakyembe told the forum that by 2015, the Dar es Salaam Port, currently having a handling capacity of 12 million tons of cargo, would be facilitated to handle 18 million tons annually and cut down transport time from four days to two days to reach Rwanda and Burundi borders.
It was revealed at the forum that at least 95 per cent of cargo haulage currently depends on long distance trucks, drawing appeals for a serious shift to railway transportation. “Implementation of plans for the replacement of the old railway line is underway.
The railway system at the moment ferries hardly 200,000 tons annually while the target is to ferry 3 million tons by 2015,” Dr Mwakyembe explained.
He assured skeptics that the government was determined to accomplish all plans, giving an example of the ongoing construction of bridges, massive repair of locomotives and the importation of new engines.
Antico Events Manager, Warren Erses, expressed delight for the timely and relevant meeting that gave a chance to stakeholders to share ideas on the best way to improve and sustain reliable transportation.
The Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC) Public Relations Manager, Ms Pendo Gondwe, called for stepped up investments in infrastructure, currently standing at only 7 per cent, adding that financers should take advantage of the good investment climate enabled by the government.
By ROSE ATHUMANI, Tanzania Daily News
