04 Dec 2018

Mosetse in the Central District is a small village, not known even to some Batswana, not to mention the international community.

But this small village along the Francistown/Maun road with a population of 1 661 (According to 2001 population census) will soon strengthen the voices of other small villages by linking to towns and bigger villages in Botswana and beyond.

 The construction of a railway line from Mosetse to the fast growing northern town of Kazungula will soon usher in a new era.

According to the World Bank, the 367km railway line, which is part of the North South Corridor (NSC), is an economic project that will facilitate greater regional integration to access markets in the north to facilitate economic growth in the SADC region running south-westwards from Livingstone, crossing the Zambezi, and continuing to a junction with the existing Botswana Railways tracks at Mosetse.

The multi-million pula project will, upon completion, further unlock economic value and enhance transport logistics for Botswana Ash salt and soda ash products destined for the northern markets, agriculture produce of the Chobe region to the markets in the south of the country, as well as opportunities to divert more freight on the NSC from road to rail.

The 2009 Botswana Integrated Transport Project (2009) report, which is in line with the SADC Protocol on Transport and Communications indicate that the project will cost US$440 000 retroactive financing from World Bank.

It is also understood that some of the funding of the project will be from the Chinese government. When the Minister of Finance and Economic Development, Mr Kenneth Matambo and China International Development Cooperation Agency (CIDCA) Vice Chairperson Mr Zhou Liujun recently signed letters of exchange regarding possible funding for the rail project, no figures of funding were mentioned because the Chinese were still to undertake a technical survey.

But a local newspaper, The Telegraph, estimated the cost of the railway line project to be in the region of P8 billion.

Residents of Mosetse may not know what the new development in their village will bring or what it meant in the bigger picture of regional integration. They may be looking at the new development as only going to facilitate the selling of fruits and vegetables, not knowing that it is a new beginning for good things to come – linking their village to the rest of Africa. They should look beyond immediate benefits.

When the news broke that the rail link will branch from their village, villagers were over the moon for they knew the package will bring along employment and developmental opportunities that will enhance the landscape of the village.

Moreover, for those who reside in the surrounding areas of Dukwi and Sebina, this was a relief because they knew that some of the basic services they had to access in Francistown would be a stone throw away from them.

Mr Joe Linga (63) who has been running a shop in Mosetse for the past three decades said the railway line was a welcome development. He says the idea of the railway line was mooted sometime back when he started to settle in the village. Years later, it is understood, Botswana’s President Sir Ketumile Masire and Mr Fredrick Chiluba of Zambia talked about the possibility of a rail link between the two countries.

Mr Linga says in the early 90s, Mosetse was a thriving village with vibrant weekend market visited by people from Dukwi and Sua Town. He is therefore optimistic of the future.

“We expect the railway line to bring back the vibrancy of the village because new developments such as shopping malls and market places will be constructed due to the availability of the rail link,” he says.

Mr Linga is optimistic that the coming of the railway line will also boost his other business of selling concrete products and sand for construction, which he established in 2000 earmarking the opening of Moana Copper Mine.

“I think Botswana Railways will need my products in the construction of this rail project,” he said.

A vegetable farmer, Mr Bitsang Kehitile says the rail project will complement road transport more so that rail transport is cheaper and efficient.

Mr Kehitile says the project came handy as he will be able to sell his produce to more marketable destinations, even across borders. 

“Rail transport carries larger volumes over greater distances, making it more economical, and much quicker for transporting goods and services,” he added.

Mr Keetile remembers a time when a truck that he had hired to transport maize from Zambia had a break down and remained stationary for three days, 50km from Kazungula Bridge border until he hired a new one.

The commercial farmer now looks anxiously to the construction of the rail line so that he could import maize and other farm products from Zambia to sell in Botswana which is prone to droughts.

As for Mr Godfrey Oteng, a cattle farmer, he is also looking forward to the time the project will be completed. He is optimistic that upon completion, farmers along the corridor will use the railway line to transport live animals to the BMC abattoir in Lobatse for slaughter as the Francistown abattoir is closed.

“Our area has a capacity of over 10 000 cattle, but we are unable to sell to BMC because we do not have a reliable transport such as train, which is efficient and safe,” he adds.  

Kgosi Opelo Ntshwarelang says one of the reasons people have not developed themselves in his village and Tutume Sub-district as a whole is because of fewer opportunities and lack of market for their goods particularly farm produce.

He says now that government has found it fit to construct the railway line, they are looking forward for employment and other economic opportunities.

“Agriculture is our main source of livelihood, transport comes second. These two are dependent on one another. The failure of either one to function efficiently results in inconvenience, financial loss and disaster, to say the list” he says.

People normally work harder when there are opportunities; Kgosi Ntshwarelang says there is no doubt that the rail line will encourage farmers along the corridor to work harder to produce more. “Besides boosting economic opportunities in the sub district, it will also bring business into the village,” he says, adding that there are over 700 youths in the village who have finished secondary and tertiary education but are without employment.

“We have a copper mine near our village and it is our hope that the mine will also use the railway line to transport its copper either north or south,” he said.

The traditional leader is hopeful that the rail project will finally take off because the Kazungula Bridge, which is nearing completion, already has a rail component designed to be part of the line.

Unlike ordinary residents of Mosetse, who are eagerly waiting for the commencement and eventual completion of the railway line for their immediate benefits, Kgosi Ntshwarelang is looking at the bigger picture of regional integration, he says the railway line is a ‘milestone’ as it will be connecting Botswana to Zambia and the whole of Central Africa.

Botswana and Zambia are currently linked by a pantoon service, which is slow and leads to delays in the flow of cargo between the two countries.

Kgosi Ntshwarelang explains that ordinary people in his village will stand to benefit from the railway line while at the same time it will encourage economic prosperity of people in the SADC region.

This rail link is a dream come true not for Africans, but for the man who mooted the dream of the Cape to Cairo railway network, Cecil John Rhodes.

The construction of the Mosetse-Kazungula rail project will indeed relief congestion on the road transport and make the route through Botswana the shortest along the north–south corridor, which will definitely reduce the cost of transport of goods.

For crop farmers, the construction of the railway line will boost the agricultural sector in the area, particularly the Pandamatenga farms, which is regarded as the nation’s food basket.

Its pre-feasibility study was completed in December 2012 by Canadian Pacific Consultancy Services, Transcom International Limited (consultants) and a Bankable Feasibility Study will be conducted in 2019/2020 followed by implementation of the project, which will be carried between a period of six to seven years, according to Botswana Railways properties officials when briefing the recent Francistown Full Council meeting.

According to the appraisal report of the project, the opening of a railway line between Mosetse and Kazungula will benefit populations and businesses engaged in mining, agricultural and service sectors which contribute to more than 70 per cent of the region’s GDP.

The link will also create a super-link to the South African port of Durban and further open other rail link to the Namibian port of Walvis Bay to develop what is known as the Walvis Bay Corridor, in which Botswana has vested interest.

According to the 2012 SADC Regional Infrastructure Development Master Plan on the Transport Sector, the key objective of the region is to identify key hubs and gateways for rehabilitation and development in order to ensure that both passenger and goods markets are adequately catered for.

According to the Southern Africa Economic outlook-2018-report; more  coordinated  and  robust  regional  infrastructure  corridors  such  as  water,  ports,  roads,  and rail can integrate economies within the region. ENDS