The third-party rail freight access that has been approved to 11 privately owned train operating companies is key to the countrys efforts to increase bulk volumes in the context of boosting trade on the continent.
Transport Minister Barbara Creecy, speaking at the 14th Southern African Railways Association conference on Tuesday, highlighted the significance of the historic move in light of how African nations were grappling with global trade disruptions and seeking to leverage the African Continental Free Trade Area to boost intra-continental trade.
Transport ministers from Kenya, Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe are attending the event, which runs from August 26-29 in Sandton, Johannesburg.