China and most African countries are important partners in long-term friendship and cooperation, and China's assistance in building many engineering projects in African countries has emphasized the close cooperation and mutually beneficial and win-win relationship between the two countries. The African continent is ushering in a wave of infrastructure construction, and China is the main driving force.

As the Chinese saying goes, "If you want to get rich, you have to build a road first", through the aid to build railroad projects, China has opened the way to prosperity and development for African countries. These projects cover many countries and regions in Africa, extending railroad networks to remote areas and important commercial centers, and greatly promoting intra-African connectivity and economic development. China-aided railroad projects have not only brought modern transportation infrastructure to Africa, but also created huge opportunities for economic growth and social progress. Let's learn about the seven major railroad projects in Africa built with China's assistance and feel the strong infrastructure capacity of our motherland.

01 Ajawi Railway

The 752.7-kilometer-long Ajia Railway was designed and constructed in September 2010, with a design speed of 120 kilometers per hour, and is organized and constructed by China Railway and China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC). After the completion of the railroad, the transportation time from Addis Ababa to Djibouti will be reduced from the current road transportation of 7 days to 10 hours, which will become an important sea transportation channel for Ethiopia.

The Aji Railway is a reflection of the deepening cooperation between China and Africa in the new era, and also inherits the tradition of friendly cooperation between China and Africa in railroad infrastructure.

02 Tanzanian Railway

Tanzanian Railway, with a total length of 1,860.5 kilometers, starts from Dar es Salaam, a port city of Tanzania in East Africa, and ends at Kapirimbohi in the central part of Zambia in Southern Africa, which is built with the assistance of the Chinese government by providing interest-free loans. It is one of China's largest foreign aid projects, and China has dispatched 50,000 engineers and technicians. The project started in October 1970, and in June 1975 the whole line was paved and put into trial operation, and in July 1976 it was formally handed over to the Tanzanian and Zanzibar governments.

The Tanzanian Railway is a major trunk line through East Africa and Central and Southern Africa, and its completion has greatly improved the transportation situation in Tan and Zambia, providing an outlet to the sea for Zambia, a landlocked country rich in copper resources, and becoming the lifeblood of Tanzanian and Zambia's economic development, and setting up a monument to the friendship between the Chinese and African people.

03 Aka Railway (Nigeria)

In October 2006, CLC signed the Nigeria Railway Modernization Project with Nigeria. The project starts from Lagos, the largest city and economic center of Nigeria in the south, passes through Abuja, the capital, and reaches Kano, the northern town, with a total length of 1,315 kilometers.

The first section of the project, Abuja - Kaduna Railway Project (Aka Railway) is 186.5 kilometers long, with nine stations along the line and a design speed of 150 kilometers per hour. The construction of Akoka Railway started in 2011 and in July 2016, it was officially opened to traffic.

04 Addis Ababa Light Rail

With a total length of 34 kilometers, the Addis Ababa urban light rail line, the capital of Ethiopia, started construction in January 2012 and officially opened to traffic in September 2015 by China Railway Corporation. As the first modernized urban light rail line officially put into operation on the African continent, the opening of this light rail line will greatly improve the travel efficiency of Addis Ababa residents and drive the economic development of the entire city.

05 Mozambedes Railway (Angola)

In the south of Angola, the Mosan Medes Railway is a steel dragon that snakes 876 kilometers across the provinces of Namibe, Huíla and Cuando Mbango. Largely abandoned and paralyzed by the end of the civil war in 2002, it was rebuilt by the Chinese private company Hoyuan Group in 2007 and "resurrected" in 2015.

06 Benguela Railroad (Angola)

This railroad is the longest railroad built by China overseas after the Tanzanian Railway. Constructed by China Railway Construction Bureau 20 Group, the 1,344-kilometer-long project starts from the Atlantic port city of Lobito in the west, and passes through important cities such as Benguela, Huambo, Cuito, Luena and other cities in the east, arriving directly at the border city of Luau, which borders the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The railroad has 67 stations along the whole line, with a design speed of 90 kilometers per hour.　

In 2004, China Railway Construction Bureau 20 Group won the bid for the Benguela Railway project, and the railroad was finally completed in February 2015 and opened to traffic. From design to construction, the project adopts all Chinese railroad construction standards, and materials such as rails, cement and communication equipment are all purchased from China, and the rolling stock and other equipment will also be provided by Chinese enterprises after it is put into operation. According to the long-term planning, in the future, the railroad will also be connected with Anzan and Tanzan Railway and the railroad networks of neighboring countries, so as to realize the interconnection of the railroad in Southern Africa and form a big international railroad channel between the Atlantic Ocean and the Indian Ocean.

07 Monnet Railway

General contracted by CCCC and constructed by China Road and Bridge, the Monnet Railway connects Mombasa, the largest port in East Africa, with Nairobi, the capital of Kenya. With a total length of about 480 kilometers, the construction of the railroad started in December 2014 and is expected to be opened to traffic in 2017. The main line of the project adopts single track, an internal combustion engine system, with a design speed of 120 kilometers per hour for passengers and 80 kilometers per hour for freight, and adopts the first-class standard of China's national railway for design and construction.

The Monnet Railway is the largest infrastructure project built in Kenya over the past half century, and according to the vision plan, the railroad will also connect six East African countries, including Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan.

Conclusion

China's investment and construction in Africa has led to a large demand for building materials and construction machinery, and has also brought new opportunities for domestic enterprises in related fields.

The development of Africa is not only a new opportunity for local people but also a great opportunity for Chinese enterprises, Amanbo is committed to helping Chinese enterprises, especially SMEs, to find and seize the opportunities in Africa. Amanbo is committed to helping Chinese enterprises, especially SMEs, find and seize opportunities in Africa, so that more Chinese enterprises can enjoy the dividends of China-Africa cooperation and the "Belt and Road".