China and Tanzania just finalized their partnership agreements to build the final section of the Standard Gauge Railway line which would bridge Tanzania with some of its neighbours.

The $2.2 billion deal was signed on Tuesday, with the president of Tanzania, Samia Suluhu Hassan in attendance to witness the signing. The contract was signed between the Tanzanian government and the Chinese companies CCECC and CRCC.

The architected 2,561-kilometer network will link the port of Dar es Salaam to Mwanza on Lake Victoria, as subsequent constructions have been designed to extend the railway line to Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Rwanda, and Uganda.

According to the Tanzanian president during the signing, the completion of the railway is set to be completed in 2026, 9 years after construction began.

“Upon completion of the SGR, Tanzania will be in a better position to utilize its strategic geographical positioning to facilitate cross-border trade,” she said.

She also revealed that so far, the project has amounted to $10.04 billion or Sh24 trillion, including the latest contract.

“We have to borrow for this important infrastructure and other sustainable development projects because we don’t have enough local resources,” she stated.

The railway line was proposed with the intention of cutting down logistics costs for citizens of Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of Congo, who transport goods to and from both countries.

The president estimated that cargo transportation which typically costs around a minimum of $6,000 per tonne, would be cut down by at least $2000.

Also, transportation time would fall from 30 days by truck to 30 hours in 2027.

Tanzania of late has found partnership opportunities with East Asian countries. Last month, the country signed over a dozen deals with China. Read the story here. In the same month, they also partnered with South Korea to boost their tech sector. Read the story here.