Congos to tighten ties with a bridge

By JUAKALI KAMBALE, NATION CorrespondentPosted Sunday, July 12 2009 at 18:19

KINSHASA, Sunday

Kinshasa and Brazzaville, the capital cities of the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Congo respectively, are to be linked by a bridge within five years.

The decision was made during the meeting of ministers of the Economic Community of the Central African States (CEEAC) held in Kinshasa last month.

The bridge will be built from a suburb called Kinsuka in Kinshasa.

A memorandum of understanding for the construction has been signed by the DRC minister of Planning, Mr Olivier Kamitatu and his Congo Brazzaville’s counterpart, Mr Justin Balemego, the minister in charge of Regional Integration and Nepad.

Mr Kamitatu said the project aims at ensuring regularity and security of goods traffic between Kinshasa and Brazzaville and improving the quality of life of the people of the two neighbouring countries.

It is expected that the bridge, to include both a road and a railway, will not only increase the goods traffic between the Atlantic port of Pointe Noire in Congo Brazzaville and the city of Kinshasa, but will also significantly shorten the distance between Kinshasa and the Atlantic ocean by about 200km.

The same project includes the construction of a railroad between Kinshasa and the DRC city of Ilebo, Western Kasai Province, a distance of 1,015km.

By doing so, the city of Kinshasa will be linked by railway to Lubumbashi (2,300km), the capital city of the mineral-rich province of Katanga, South Eastern DRC.

A railway already exists between Ilebo and Lubumbashi.

Despite the expected benefits, the project has elicited criticism in both countries from those who depend on the river activities, and now fear losing their livelihoods.

Some businessmen and politicians in the affected region have already expressed their worries about the implementation of such a project.