Zimbabwe: Railways to be placed in private hands

Written by Martin Zhuwakinyu Monday, 08 February 2010 15:15

The Zimbabwean governments monopoly over the national railway infrastructure could soon come to an end after indications that the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) is to be sold off.

The news comes after a World Bank recommendation that the NRZ close down two-thirds of its railway network to allow for rehabilitation because of the high potential for disaster it poses.

According to the 2010 to 2015 Medium-Term Plan presented by Finance Minister Tendai Biti recently, government is considering the creation of a separate body “to own and operate railway infrastructure while the rail (passenger and bulk) freight services are opened up to a number of sector players for a fee”.

If approved, the plan will mark the end of the NRZ’s reign in managing the country’s

3 077 km of railway infrastructure, which includes signalling and telecommunications systems, leaving it to compete against other players in providing rail transport services.

The plan proposes a massive rehabilitation of all railway infrastructure, which has been paralysed by obsolete communication systems, worn-out rail lines and the theft of more than three-quarters of copper wire lines, which has effectively paralysed the signal and communication systems across the country.

Biti tells Engineering News that the Zimbabwe railway system is on the brink of collapse, owing to many factors, among them mismanagement and failure by the parastatal to update its systems over the past 20 years.

“The railway system has collapsed – and I mean it has collapsed entirely. Following a study by a team of experts from the World Bank, we have been given recommendations to shut down at least two-thirds of the network because it is a disaster waiting to happen,” Biti says.

The NRZ, which needs at least $274-million to conduct a detailed infrastructure update, was allocated only $16,7-milion for the mammoth task, which is expected to take nearly a decade to complete. However, NRZ spokesperson Fanuel Masikati tells Engineering News that the parastatal is not taking the advice of the World Bank.

“Suggestions that we should close the greater part of our network are unfounded; there will be nothing of that sort. There are evident challenges that we are battling against but rehabilitation efforts are under way to bring NRZ back on track.”

He says the NRZ is a key operator in the national economy and any suspension of

services, even partly, would amount to “national economic sabotage”.
 
“[The NRZ] supports various industrial activities and is key to the economic revival

strategies that government is pursuing. Maintenance activities should continue without stopping industrial activity. However slow, the public utility should continue operations,” Masikati says.

A senior engineman with the NRZ tells Engineering News that only 12 diesel engines are in operation across the country, of which only six are still usable for long-distance passenger and goods freight transportation.

“The rest are down and in need of replacement. Presently, any engine that breaks down is cannibalised for spare parts; that is why we are now using old steam locomotives for shunting around the marshalling yards in Bulawayo, Gweru and Harare. For example, we have a situation where an engine that brings the overnight passenger train from Harare is immediately sent to Hwange to collect coal or down to Beitbridge to pull up fuel tankers.”