January 19, 2025

SADC Secretariat will convene the 2nd Meeting of the Lobito Corridor Committee of Ministers of Angola, DRC, and Zambia to review progress and establish a corridor management institute for coordination of the Corridor

The Secretariat of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) will hold the 2nd meeting of the Lobito Corridor Committee of Ministers with representatives from the three (3) Corridor Member States: The Republic of Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and the Republic of Zambia. The Ministers will evaluate and analyse the efforts of the Technical Working Group that they assigned during their initial meeting on 16 December 2023 in Lobito, Angola, to setup and operationalise the Lobito Corridor Transit Transport Facilitation Agency Interim Secretariat. The Interim Secretariat will oversee the daily coordination of all development activities related to the Lobito Corridor. 

On January 27, 2023, in Lobito, Angola, the Ministers responsible transport from three (3) Corridor Member States came together to sign the Lobito Corridor Transit Transport Facilitation Agency (LCTTFA) Agreement. This Agreement establishes a governing framework for Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Zambia, enabling them to work collaboratively on the development of harmonised corridor laws, policies, regulations, and systems, as well as infrastructure development, in a coordinated and coherent manner.

The LCTTFA Agreement defines the governance structure and establishes a framework for cooperation among the three SADC Member States, in alignment with the provisions of the SADC Treaty, Protocols, and development frameworks. Central to these SADC frameworks is the SADC Protocol on Transport, Communications and Meteorology, Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (RISDP) 2020-2030, the Regional Infrastructure Development Master Plan (RIDMP) 2013-2027, and the SADC Industrialisation Strategy and Roadmap (SISR) 2015-2063.

The operationalisation of the Interim Secretariat will provide a platform to expedite the current identified priority infrastructure projects along the Corridor. These include the construction of the Zambia-Lobito Railway Greenfield Project, which connects Zambia Railways from Chingola to the Benguela railway at Luacano, Angola; the rehabilitation of the Dilolo-Kolwezi Railway; the development of agricultural value chains for agro-processing; and the development of mining value chains to facilitate mineral beneficiation, including battery and electric vehicle manufacturing. All these efforts will enhance the participation of SMEs in the value chains, allowing for improved productivity, reduced unemployment, and leading to economic development that alleviates poverty for the three (3) Corridor Member States.

The meeting of the Ministers will be preceded by the Technical Experts Meeting and the Executive Committee meeting, which will include senior government officials, scheduled for January 20 and 21, 2025, respectively. The two (2) meetings will serve as preparations for the Ministers’ Meeting scheduled for 22 January 2025. Additionally, the meeting will include participation from International Cooperating Partners (ICPs) representing the European Union, United States of America, African Development Bank (AfDB), and Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), among others.