Zambia and Angola have reopened talks on the revival of a railway line that links the two countries but has been abandoned over the years, the Times of Zambia reported on Friday.The two countries will soon sign a Memorandum of Understanding on the revival of the Lobito-Benguela railway line to link the two countries. Christopher Yaluma, Zambia’s Minister of Transport, Communication, Works and Supply said the MoU would be signed within the next four weeks once the necessary studies had been completed. The Zambian minister said the idea to restart the railway project was agreed upon when he met his Angolan counterpart Augusto Tomas da Silva where they held bilateral talks, adding that the Angolan government had shown commitment to ensure that the railway line was revived soon to enhance trade between the two countries.According to Yaluma, the railway line will be the shortest link between the two countries and that the road and railway projects were key issues which needed to be completed within the shortest possible time.The line, which will also link the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to the two countries, would increase volumes of trade between the two countries and the region as a whole.The railway line has not been used for 27 years following a civil war that broke out in Angola and ended in 2002. It tails from Port of Lobito in Angola and extends more than 1, 348 kilometers to the east, crossing the provinces of Huambo and Bie to Moxico Province at the border with Zambia.
