TAZARA director objects to concessioning of railway

TAZARA director objects to concessioning of railway
Written by Chiwoyu Sinyangwe
Tuesday, June 16, 2009 2:56:00 PM

TANZANIA Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA) acting managing director Henry Chipewo has objected to attempts to concession the railway line to the Chinese. Chipewo argued that the railway line needed efficient and focused management for it to remain afloat. He said the Chinese should continue to support TAZARA without concessioning it to them.

“The Chinese have been supporting TAZARA through the protocols and to them they feel it is the best they can do to give TAZARA the locomotives, the wagons. The technical assistance that the Chinese are giving is more than enough. All we need in TAZARA is efficient management with a focus and vision and inculcate the culture of responsibility in the employees,” Chipewo said.

“The issues of concessioning came about because TAZARA had actually stopped running. So, the only alternative was to look for a concessionaire. But in a situation where the Zambians are able to do that and they are supported, to me I don’t buy the concept of concessioning. One thing is true; there is no concessioning that has been successful in Africa or the world over…it is just that in Africa, we don’t understand transport, later on, railways.”

And Chipewo disclosed that TAZARA was spending about K4 billion every month to liquidate its US $100 million (K500 billion) debt, with a projection to become debt-free by 2012.

“In spite of the debts that TAZARA did contract over the years, if we will be able to carry enough traffic like 1.2 to two million tonnes per annum, TAZARA is capable of hitting US $100 million per annum and when that happens, we will be able to even address the main problems that we have had over time,” said Chipewo.

“I want to assure the Zambians that TAZARA has changed to such an extent that for the first time, we are paying taxes to government, paying insurance to ZSIC [Zambia State Insurance Corporation], NAPSA [National Pensions Scheme Authority] albeit on small scale because the uptake of our traffic is not yet much and unfortunately, we have taken over TAZARA at the time when the economic downturn has hit the whole world. Right now, we are spending about US $850, 000 (close to K4 billion) every month to service the debts that TAZARA contracted over the years…we are also paying to TAZARA retirees some certain amounts of money they were not paid called TAZARA specifics.”