All aboard for Africa’s heartland – on a train built in China
Inaugural journey on 750km line from Djibouti and the Suez Canal to landlocked Ethiopian capital
A multibillion-dollar China-built rail line linking the Horn of Africa with the continent's vast interior was officially launched on Tuesday, an important milestone for China’s burgeoning influence in the region.
The 750km line connects port city Djibouti and Addis Ababa, the capital of landlocked Ethiopia, the fastest-growing economy in Africa. The railway is expected to reduce the travel time between the two cities, from three days by road to just 12 hours by train.
It is also widely seen as the start of a trans-African railway project, in which a 2,000km track will connect Djibouti, a gateway to the Suez Canal and one of the world’s busiest shipping routes, with the Atlantic Ocean.
The railway was 70 per cent financed by China’s Exim Bank and built by two large Chinese state-owned companies – China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) and China Railway Construction Corporation. It is the latest symbol of China’s growing presence in Africa, a continent that has been traditionally under the influence of the West.
The line was the first standard-gauge electrified railroad on the continent built with Chinese standards and technology.