The Sunday News
ACCORDING to the National Development Strategy 1, one of its key objectives is to improve the rail infrastructure and increase freight as well as passenger movement.
The document further says the target under the NDS1 is to increase the proportion of track meeting set standards (Track Quality Index) from 57% in 2020 to 68% by 2025, as well as increasing freight cargo from 2,6 million tonnes per annum in 2020 to 6,7 million tonnes per annum by 2025.
Furthermore, to achieve the outcome of improved rail infrastructure and services, Government will expedite the restructuring and unbundling of National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) into State-Owned Railway Infrastructure Company (Infrastructure Management) and a Privately Owned Railway Services Company (Operations).
In addition, NDS1 will prioritise recapitalisation of NRZ targeting refurbishment and replacement of NRZ rolling stock, signalling, ICT and track infrastructure, developing long-term Rail Infrastructure Development Plan, implementation of cost-based user fees in line with regional benchmarks to improve operational and financial performance as well as to enable re-investment in infrastructure, rebuilding customer confidence through Service Level Agreements (SLA) between NRZ and its regular customers, up-scaling private investment and participation in infrastructure through long-term national rail Infrastructure Development Plan, and Capacity building including training of artisans to improve the availability of rolling stock.
There is no doubt that NRZ has a key role in the country’s economic turnout in transporting both goods and people.
It is behind that background as spelt out by the NDS1 that the NRZ is working flat out to re-energise the company.
We commend the company for working round the clock to look for investors. Last week, we reported that the company signed a Memorandum of Understanding with a construction Turkish company Yapi Merkez. The Turkish company has agreed to invest in the rehabilitation and modernisation of local railway infrastructure. NRZ board chairman Advocate Martin Dinha told our sister paper, The Herald that they were confident the deal will transform NRZ.
“The Turkish company has committed itself to source, finance and act to fulfil terms of our agreement. We are very optimistic they will (fulfil the agreement). Yapi Merkez is a very big company and internationally acclaimed,” he said.
Zimbabwe’s Ambassador to Turkey, Mr Alfred Mutiwazuka also told The Herald from Istanbul that the deal signalled a “new dawn” for Zimbabwe-Turkey relations.
Experts said the signing of the MoU between the two entities is a clear demonstration of the fruits of the investment drive being implemented by the new dispensation and NRZ. In terms of the economy, the railways plays a major role in integrating markets and increasing trade. The World Bank adds that; “Railways are a climate-smart and efficient way to move people and freight. Railways promote economic growth while cutting greenhouse gas emissions. They are a clean and compact way to move millions of passengers and millions of tonnes of goods across countries and continents.”
With the work being done at NRZ, we can say, “there is light at the end of the tunnel.”
