Zimbabwe has signed an agreement with a Chinese-Austrian consortium to resume the delayed $2.7-billion rehabilitation and expansion of the 971-kilometer Beitbridge-Harare-Chirundu highway, which links landlocked Zimbabwe and Zambia to the ports of Durban and Richards Bay in South Africa. The agreement comes a year after a consortium that had previously won the contract withdrew a court case that halted the project.
Transport Minister Jorum Gumbo announced on Aug. 22 that the framework agreement with China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd (CHEC) and China-based Austrian company Geiger International spells out the scope of work, financing model, implementation and local-content component in the project.