Africa needs 'improved transport infrastructure'

4 November 2010

Lack of transport infrastructure is the single-biggest issue preventing the development of Africa, one expert has claimed.

Ahmed Heikal, chairman and founder of Citadel Capital Corporation, is trying to link the Egyptian port of Damietta to Mombasa in Kenya, Bloomberg reports.

He hopes the $650 million (£400) project will improve the transportation of goods throughout the continent so that countries can begin to stand on their own two feet.

A by-product of the growth that is anticipated is an increase in jobs.

As well as completing the river scheme, upgrades to the current rail system will need to be carried out.

Thanks to a $250 million investment in Rift Valley Railways, a 2,000-kilometre railway connecting Mombasa to neighbouring Uganda will be modernised.

It comes after it was announced that a South African company is planning to spend 93 billion rand (£8 billion) on improving its railways over the next five years.
 

Category: Transport