Today New Era continues its coverage of the Harambee Prosperity Plan (HPP) with a closer look at Pillar 4: Infrastructure Development: Transport.
In view of Namibia’s ambition of becoming a logistics and distribution hub by 2030, significant investment outlays will have to be made in all four modes of transport infrastructure, namely road, rail, maritime and aviation. Development of transport infrastructure has been prioritised in all NDPs, but it was only in NDP4 that the audacious goal of becoming a logistics and distribution hub was adopted. Subsequently, more money has been invested in the development of our transport infrastructure. It was during NDP4 that the expansion of the Port of Walvis Bay, that was almost running at full capacity, was also kick-started. Equally significant progress had been made under NDP4 with respect to road infrastructure and the upgrade of security-related infrastructure at our airport.
Much less progress was made with regard to the upgrade of rail infrastructure. Certain sections of the rail infrastructure are in urgent need of repair or replacement. Lack of rail upgrade may also bear negative consequence on the significant investment at the Port of Walvis Bay. Major shipping lines have indicated that a functioning rail system would be a precondition for them to stop at the Port of Walvis Bay. At the top of the list is the Walvis Bay-Tsumeb connection that apart from the urgency and safety considerations also presents a solid business case.
Mines operating along this stretch of the railway line have indicated their preference to transport their products via rail as opposed to road, which is deemed more expensive and less safe. The current over-reliance of cargo on road infrastructure creates damage that is costly to maintain and also negatively affects road safety. Traffic congestion is not only prevalent on some national roads, but also in more densely populated urban areas, in particular in the capital Windhoek, as well as between places such as Windhoek and Rehoboth, Windhoek and Okahandja, Walvis Bay and Swakopmund and Omuthiya and Ondwangwa.
The desired outcomes with regard to the upgrade of transport infrastructure during the Harambee period will be the following: Completion of the deepening and expansion of the Port of Walvis to be able to handle a minimum of one million TEUs; the extension of bitumen roads by 526 kilometres, including the selective introduction of dual carriageways; upgrade of the national rail infrastructure by 612 kilometres to SADC standard; and ensure air safety standards.
The following specific projects will be executed to ensure upgrades of growth-critical transport infrastructure during the Harambee period:
➜ Railway upgrades: The following rail upgrades will be executed during the Harambee period:
- Upgrading of the rail network from Walvis Bay to Tsumeb, to be fully completed by 2020. • The upgrade of the Sandverhaar-Buchholzbrunn [40 kilometres]. • The construction of sand tunnels on the Aus-Luderitz railway. • The introduction of a commuter train service between Windhoek Central and Katutura and other suburbs. • The introduction of commuter train services between Windhoek and Rehoboth. • The introduction of commuter train services between Windhoek and Okahandja, Windhoek to International Airport. • Detailed feasibility plans to be submitted for approval by Cabinet by March 2018.
➜ Road upgrades: The following road upgrades will be carried out during the Harambee period:
- Upgrade of the Windhoek-Okahandja road to dual carriageway will be completed by December 2019. • Upgrade of the Windhoek-Hosea Kutako International Airport road to dual carriageway by December 2019. • Upgrade of the Omuthiya-Ongwediva road to dual carriageway. Work will start during Harambee period, but will only be fully completed after 2020. • The upgrading of the Karibib-Usakos-Swakopmund road to a two plus one cross section road. Work will commence during the Harambee period, completion after 2020. • Upgrading of the Swakopmund-Walvis Bay road to dual carriageway by December 2019. • Upgrading of the Swakopmund-Henties Bay-Kamanjab road to bitumen standard. Work on this road will go beyond the Harambee period. ➜ Port and runway upgrades: The following with regard to port and runway development will be done during the Harambee Period. • Completion of the extension of the Port of Walvis Bay by 2018. • Upgrade of the Eros Airport runway and terminal by June 2017. • Upgrade of the Mpacha Airport runway by end 2018. • Upgrade of the Hosea Kutako International Airport runway and terminal. • In our next edition we will continue unpacking the Harambee Prosperity Plan by taking a closer look at Information Communication Technology (ICT) within Pillar 4: Infrastructure Development.