<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><u><strong>Shire-Zambezi Water Way to open up Southern and Central Africa</strong></u></font></font></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><u><strong>By Muyanga Ziba</strong></u></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3">A<strong>t first it was just a rumour that Presidents in Southern and Central Africa Africa are discussing,not to solve conflicts but to re- open a route that was used by explorers in discovering internal Africa.</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>Now it has happened.Malawi, Mozambique and Zambia recently signed a memorandum of understanding to pave way for the feasibility study of the Shire -Zambezi Water Way.</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>Malawi Minister of Transport Henry Mussa signed on behalf of Malawi while his Mozambican counterpart signed on behalf of his country.The Zambian Envoy to Malawi Joshua Mweemba signed on behalf of Zambia.</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>All the three officials pledged support from their governments as the route would reduce the costs in importing and exporting goods and services by 60 percent. </strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>After signing of the memorandum , Director of Transport and Planning in the Ministry of Transport and Public Worksa in Malawi, Victor Lungu said an international firm will be engaged to carry out the hydrographic study to ,among others, assess the depth of the two rivers.</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>According to the speech of President of Malawi Dr. Bingu Wa Mutharika at the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) in 2005, Rwanda, Burundi and Zimbabwe stand to benefit from the route.</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>The route would cost almost $6 billion to construct.</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>Sindiso Ngwenya,Common Market for Easten and Southern Africa (COMESA)Secretary General said earlier this year his organisation would fund half a million dollars (US) for the hydrographic study. </strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>Malawi mostly uses the Tanzanian route .Goods have to travel 1,200 kilometres.However the new route is only 238 kilometres.</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>Northern eastern Mozambique which is near Malawi would no longer be land locked.Equally,Eastern Zambia will be opened up.Goods are transported from South Africa or Tanzania to Lusaka, the Capital city of Zambia .From there, some of the goods are then transported to Easten Zambia.</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>The 2005 Malawi Transport Costs Study indicate that Malawi spends 250 million America dollars every year to export its goods as well as to receive goods from other countries.</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>According to a document that was sent to NEPAD, the project will involve, among others,construction and rehabilitation of the road from Malawi to Rwanda and Burundi,Dredging and conversion of the Shire-Zambezi waterway into a model cannal, Upgrading and modernisation of Nsanje port in Malawi and Chinde Port in Mozambique as well as rehabilitation of the road from Malawi to Zambia.</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>The route will make goods and services more competitive on the international market as they will be more cheap, according to investment experts,</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>"The route will make agricultural goods affordable to farmers because of cheap prices .This will mean farmers will save alot of money on inputs," said Dr. Chinkhuntha, an irrigation farmer who owns a farm in Central Malawi that has been visited by many tourists.</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>The cost of transportation increases the cost of production and makes goods in the sub region uncompetitive on the international market.</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>Th Shire Zambezi Water way will be financed by governments who will participate in the project, the donor community,as well as some companies in the private sector.</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>Sources from Ministry of Transport and Public Works in Malawi indicate that New Partnership for African Develeopment(NEPAD) has also shown willingness to fund the project.The project will foster regional intergration in line with NEPAD objectives.NEPAD has identified the development as one of the major parameters for economic growth and poverty in Africa.</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>Malawi Government has already started construction of quays/berths at Nsanje Port. The work started in 2005.Already investors from many countries have acquired land at the port in readiness for it to being busy in few years to come.</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>The route was used by Malawi and Mozambique in the 1970s .Mawtam Limited operated a barge service transporting molasses from Chilomo in Malawi to Chinde on the coast of Indian Ocean in Mozambique.Because of the civil war in Mozambique,this route was stopped.</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>According to the Government of Malawi,Glens Limited organised asurvey by boat of the Lower Shire and Zambezi Rivers.They survey found the rivers still navigable all the way to the Indian Ocean port of Chinde .</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>Ragional bodies like SADC and COMESA have hailed the positive response from the region saying the route will promote regional intergration through business and cultural links.</strong></font></font></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm"><font face="ae_AlYermook"><font size="3"><strong>They also say the project will enhance economic independence as money on transport will be saved in Rwanda, Burundi,Tanzania,Zambia, Zimbabwe,Mozambique and Malawi.</strong></font></font></div>
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