In the heart of southern Africa, a new artery of commerce is taking shape across the Luapula River. Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo are advancing the Kasomeno–Mwenda corridor—a roughly $850 million public-private partnership encompassing nearly 184 kilometres of modern road, a landmark 362-metre cable-stayed bridge, and a large one-stop border post. Once complete, expected in the third quarter of 2027, it will shorten round-trip journeys from the Haut-Katanga and Copperbelt mining heartlands to Tanzania’s Dar es Salaam port by up to 500 kilometres.
This is more than a road and a bridge. It is practical infrastructure for the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), turning the continent’s free-trade ambitions into faster, cheaper movement of the copper and cobalt that power the global energy transition.
A New Corridor, Not Just Another Upgrade
Unlike many African projects that rehabilitate existing routes, Kasomeno–Mwenda creates a largely new alignment. Roughly 92 kilometres run on the Zambian side from Kashiba through Chalwe to Mwenda in Mwense District, Luapula Province; a comparable stretch extends from Kasomeno toward Kasenga in the DRC’s Haut-Katanga. The centrepiece is the 362-metre cable-stayed bridge over the Luapula River—featuring a steel deck and prominent A-shaped pylons—the first of its kind in the DRC and set to become a regional landmark. A substantial one-stop border post, planned at around 32,000 square metres under roof, aims to scan vehicles in motion and slash crossing times.
Developed by GED Africa (with subsidiaries in each country) and backed by Hungary’s Duna Aszfalt, the project operates under two parallel 25-year build-operate-transfer concessions—three years of construction followed by 22 years of operation and maintenance, financed through tolls. Construction began in mid-2024. By August 2026 the overall project had reached about 50 percent completion, with the bridge advancing faster (around 60 percent on the Zambian side). China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation is the main contractor. Cost figures vary by source and scope: the promoter has cited an overall envelope near $850 million, while the Zambian concession is reported around $260 million.
Progress has been steady despite the complexities of cross-border coordination, rainy seasons, and the engineering demands of building over a major river. The model—harmonised legal frameworks between two sovereign states and private capital—offers a template for other AfCFTA corridors.
Green Minerals and the Global Supply Chain
The Copperbelt straddling Zambia and the DRC remains one of the world’s richest sources of copper and cobalt. These minerals are indispensable for electric-vehicle batteries, renewable-energy infrastructure, and the broader green transition. Yet logistics have long been a bottleneck. The main existing crossing at Kasumbalesa frequently suffers severe congestion from heavy mineral trucks, inputs, and consumer goods. Alternative routes add time and cost.
By offering a more direct eastern outlet toward Dar es Salaam, the new corridor reduces distance, transit time, and transport costs for concentrate and refined metal. Industry analyses have projected meaningful savings—potentially in the range of 20 percent on certain copper-cobalt logistics costs in earlier assessments—while easing pressure on saturated southern and western routes. Faster, more reliable movement strengthens the competitiveness of African production in global markets increasingly focused on secure, traceable critical-mineral supplies.
This is AfCFTA in action. The agreement seeks to create the world’s largest free-trade area by population, reducing tariffs and non-tariff barriers. Physical connectivity is the missing link. Without efficient corridors, preferential access remains theoretical. Kasomeno–Mwenda shortens the path from mine to port, lowers the friction of intra-African and extra-African trade, and helps embed the region more firmly in resilient supply chains.
Regional Integration, Local Opportunity, and the PPP Advantage
Beyond minerals, the corridor will serve agriculture, fishing, and general commerce in Luapula Province and adjacent Congolese areas. Reduced transport costs and travel times expand market access for local producers and create opportunities in logistics, services, and construction-related employment. The one-stop border post and tolling system are designed for continuous flow, improving efficiency for all users.
The financing structure is notable. Private capital from a European sponsor, local content commitments (minimum 30 percent of work contracted to local companies in some reports), and long-term operation-and-maintenance obligations shift risk away from stretched public budgets while aligning incentives for quality and upkeep. It stands as one of Zambia’s largest active cross-border PPPs and among the more significant single European infrastructure investments of its kind on the continent.
Challenges remain. Cost estimates have fluctuated, construction must stay on schedule through remaining seasons, and the success of tolling and border operations will depend on sustained coordination and transparent management. Broader regional security, power reliability, and complementary investments in rail or port capacity will determine how fully the corridor’s potential is realised. Yet the physical progress—bridge foundations, road embankments, and steel components arriving on site—demonstrates that complex, multi-country projects can advance when political will and private execution align.
Building the Physical Architecture of Continental Trade
AfCFTA’s promise will not be fulfilled by protocols alone. It requires concrete—literally and figuratively. The Kasomeno–Mwenda corridor is one such piece of concrete: a targeted investment that compresses distance between some of Africa’s most strategic mineral deposits and global markets, while knitting Zambia and the DRC more tightly into regional value chains.
As the bridge rises over the Luapula and the road advances toward completion in 2027, the project offers a clear lesson. Strategic, well-structured infrastructure that serves both national development and continental integration can accelerate Africa’s role in the industries of the future. Copper and cobalt will continue to leave the continent; the difference will be whether they do so efficiently, competitively, and in ways that maximise local and regional value. The Kasomeno–Mwenda corridor is helping to ensure they can.
This is the engine of AfCFTA at work—not abstract aspiration, but asphalt, steel, and a shorter path to the Indian Ocean.