Rehabilitation of the Kinshasa-Matadi railway: the Minister of Transport responds to the appeal of the Head of State
The Kinshasa-Matadi railway, a strategic axis of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), is being rehabilitated. Marc Ekila Likombo, Minister of Transport, Ways of Communication and Disenclavement, carried out an inspection visit last week to the three kilometer points where the railway is almost impassable.
Minister Likombo was accompanied by a delegation from his cabinet, the Deputy Director General of the National Office of Transport (ONATRA), Jean-Pierre Bambi, experts from the ONATRA railway control service and officials of the company ARISE, partner for the rehabilitation works.
The section visited by the Minister is only part of the 366 km of this railway line. The Kinshasa-Matadi railway is the main railway axis of ONATRA, operating other routes accessible from Matadi. It is 366 km long and was built between 1890 and 1898. The track gauge is narrow, with 1067 mm. However, for more than two years, the railway has been inoperable in some places due to the damage caused by the heavy rains in December 2022 and the dilapidated state of the rolling stock over several kilometer points.
The visit of the Minister of Transport follows the recommendation of the Head of State during the 82nd meeting of the Council of Ministers. Its objective was to verify the seriousness of the situation of the railway line and to present a modernization plan to the Head of State.
The state of disrepair, in particular the presence of two destroyed rail wires as well as damaged crossings, greatly concerned the minister. At kilometer point 33, the situation is more serious, with at least 40 meters of damaged railway. For the Minister, it is urgent to start work before the rain resumes.
The Minister also called for the responsible management of the resources allocated to ONATRA to facilitate the rehabilitation of this railway line. The partner company, Arise, will be in charge of carrying out the rehabilitation works.
This visit by the Minister of Transport shows the government’s commitment to restoring the Congolese rail network, an important measure for the economic development of the DRC