China, Zambia and Tanzania have finalized a $1.4 billion agreement to overhaul the Tanzania–Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA) line, a five-decade-old transport corridor linking the Copperbelt to the Indian Ocean.
The 1,860-kilometer railway, originally constructed by China in the 1970s, has long served as a key route for Zambia’s copper exports and fuel imports through Tanzania. The new upgrade plan was signed in Lusaka on Thursday during a visit by Chinese Premier Li Qiang.
Premier Li, Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema and Tanzanian Vice President Emmanuel Nchimbi jointly attended the groundbreaking ceremony, marking the beginning of the revitalization phase.
Li described TAZARA as a historic symbol of cooperation and said the modernization project represents “a new chapter of shared development” for the three countries.
President Hichilema emphasized that improving the corridor is central to Zambia’s ambition to become a major regional logistics and transport hub. “TAZARA is more than a railway — it is a strategic economic lifeline,” he said.
Tanzania’s Vice President Nchimbi noted that the upgrade will ease trade flows and support economic integration across the region.
The modernization works will include rehabilitating stations, rebuilding tracks, strengthening tunnels and bridges, and upgrading related infrastructure. Once completed, authorities expect freight capacity to rise dramatically from the current 100,000 tons per year to about 2.4 million tons.
Before the ceremony, Hichilema and Li held bilateral talks that concluded with the signing of nine additional cooperation agreements spanning multiple sectors.