The proposed route would join Angola’s Benguela Railway to the TAZARA network, linking the ports of Lobito and Dar es Salaam through Zambia and the DRC.

Tanzania and Angola have agreed to pursue a railway connection linking the Indian and Atlantic oceans through Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), potentially creating a major east-west trade route across southern and central Africa.

How the Tanzania-Angola rail link would work

Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan said Angola’s Benguela Railway would eventually be linked to the Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA) network, which runs to the Port of Dar es Salaam.

The proposed connection would link Angola’s Port of Lobito on the Atlantic with Tanzania’s main Indian Ocean gateway. Hassan did not give a timeline for completing the project.

The plan would connect two major mineral-export corridors. The Lobito Corridor runs from Angola through Zambia toward the DRC, while TAZARA connects Tanzania with Zambia.

The proposed network could give landlocked Zambia and mineral-producing areas of the DRC access to ports on both sides of the continent.

Competing international investment

The initiative comes as competing internationally backed infrastructure projects advance in the region.

China signed a $1.4 billion agreement with Tanzania and Zambia in 2025 to modernize TAZARA, which China helped finance and build in the 1970s. Meanwhile, the United States and the European Union have backed the Lobito Corridor as a route for critical minerals, including copper and cobalt.

The Africa Finance Corporation this week selected preferred contractors for the 830-kilometer Zambia-Lobito Railway, another key part of the wider network. Contract negotiations are expected to begin in November.

Energy cooperation

Tanzania and Angola are also expanding cooperation in energy. Angola has invited Tanzania to consider investing in the Lobito oil refinery, and the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation is assessing the potential partnership.