World Bank mission visit to assess Maputo Development Corridor implementation

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World Bank mission visit to assess Maputo Development Corridor implementation

3:59 CAT | 21 Sep 2022

Photo: Ministério dos Transportes e Comunicações

A World Bank mission has visited Mozambique to assess the potential implementation of the country’s “key corridors of green and resilient trade” project.

The World Bank team, accompanied by members of the Mozambican government, visited the Ressano Garcia border crossing in Moamba district, Maputo province, on Friday (16-09) to familiarise themselves with reforms underway there.

The arrival of the mission marks the beginning of the dialogue with the government and other interested parties about improving the efficiency of the Maputo-Gauteng Corridor, as well as the identification of potential components, technical assistance and other mechanisms pertinent to facilitating the project.

Speaking at the end of the visit, Minister of Transport and Communications Mateus Magala said that, among the ongoing reforms at the Ressano border, measures were being taken to simplify the clearance of goods, culminating in the digitization of the entire process.

“We are very pleased to see that procedures at this border no longer use paper, and take less time,” Magala said.

According to the minister, improved efficiency in the Maputo Corridor raises other challenges, since cargo volumes tend to increase, and it was therefore essential to speed up the process of transferring heavy cargo from the N4 highway to the railway system.

“Less than six months ago, around 700 trucks entered the country through Ressano Garcia per day. Today, that number is around 1,500,” Magala reported.

The minister announced that challenges to accelerating the ongoing reforms would be the subject of a workshop to be held in the Mozambican capital later this month, bringing together all the players in the logistics chain from government decision makers and infrastructure operators to users and others.

In addition to the Minister of Transport and Communications, the Minister of Industry and Commerce, Silvino Moreno, and representatives of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) also joined the visit to the border post.

Also participating were Deputy Ministers of Public Works, Housing and Water Resources, Cecília Chamutota, and of Transport and Communications, Amilton Alisson.

Source: Diário Económico