Lobito - Experts from the Lobito Corridor Transit Facilitation Agency (AFTTCL) are finalizing the agenda for the second meeting of the Agency's Committee of Transport Ministers from Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia.
According to the agency's secretariat, the proposed budget for the support facility will be discussed, as well as funding mechanisms and sources, harmonization and protocols, policies and operational manuals for the executive secretariat.
The agenda includes discussions on the proposal for an intergovernmental agreement for the implementation of the Lobito dry port for access for the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia, draft legislation and the sustainability model and strategy developed for trade facilitation in the Lobito corridor.
The meeting, scheduled for January 22, aims to review and assess the progress made in accelerating the implementation of the AFTTCL program.
During the work, a moment will be set aside for the inauguration of the AFTTCL headquarters in this railway port city.
The first meeting of the AFTTCL Committee of Ministers was held in the city of Lobito on 14 December.
This was followed by the tripartite agreement of the organization, signed on 27 January 2024 by the member states of the corridor, which covers 1,344 kilometers of railway line linking the Atlantic with the east of Angola.
The agreement serves as a framework for the three member states to work together to develop harmonized laws, policies, regulations and systems for the corridor.
It also includes the development of infrastructure in a coordinated and coherent manner, in line with the provisions of the SADC Treaty, Protocol and Frameworks, including the SADC Strategic Indicative Development Plan.
This is a crucial partnership that will enable the DRC and Zambia, as landlocked countries in the region, to use the logistics and transport infrastructure of the Lobito corridor, such as the port and the Benguela railway, for goods, mainly copper and cobalt ores, from Katanga and the Copperbelt. TC/CRB /AMP.
