The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Angola and Zambia, member countries of Southern African Development Community (SADC), have signed the Lobito C
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Angola and Zambia, member countries of Southern African Development Community (SADC), have signed the Lobito Corridor Transit Transport Facilitation Agency (LCTTFA).
The Lobito Corridor represents an alternative strategic outlet to export markets for Zambia and DRC and offers the shortest route linking key mining regions in these two countries to the sea. In Angola, the Corridor connects 40% of the country’s population and several large scale investments are taking place in agriculture and retail in the provinces of Benguela, Huambo, Bie, and Moxico traversed by the Corridor.
Lobito Corridor Transit Transport Facilitation Agency
In DRC, the Corridor connects the mining provinces of Tanganyika, Haut-Lomami, Lualaba and Haut-Katanga. Copper concentrates are currently transported from these DRC Provinces to Zambia for smelting for further export and the Corridor offers a potential conduit to overseas markets. The Project has three main components, namely: (i) Capacity Building for Trade Facilitation and Corridor Coordination, (ii) Technical Assistance for Value Chains and Economic Clusters Development and (iii) Project Management.
The LCTTFA Agreement aims to provide an effective and efficient route that facilitates the transportation of goods within territories between the three Corridor Member States, through harmonisation of policies, laws and regulations; coordinated joint corridor infrastructure development strategies and activities; dissemination of traffic data and business information; and implementation of trade facilitation instruments to support greater participation of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in business value chains mainly in agriculture and mining with the view of increasing trade and economic growth along the Lobito Corridor and across the SADC Region.
The Agency will promote the sustained maintenance of the infrastructure and stimulate the development of the Lobito Corridor, ensuring that such development, infrastructure and other support services meet the present and future user requirements and encourage the reduction of costs associated with the movement of cargo and passengers along the Corridor.