LUSAKA, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- Zambia has signed a 146.5-million-U.S. dollar agreement with Africa Inland Container Depot (AFICD) of Tanzania on the establishment of a dry port in the central town of Kapiri Mposhi, its investment agency said on Friday.
The agreement will see the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), the investment arm of the Zambian government, holding 15 percent of shares in the project while the Tanzanian firm holds 85 percent.
CEO of the IDC Mateyo Kaluba said during the signing ceremony that the project will be implemented in two phases -- first, the dry port; second, the establishment of a multi-facility economic zone.
The dry port will be an integrated logistics and industrial hub to provide services to clients across eastern, central and southern Africa thereby increasing regional market access for Zambian products, he added.
According to Kaluba, 500 jobs will be created during construction and up to 3,000 direct and indirect jobs will be created when the dry port becomes operational.
Ally Awadhi, the Tanzanian firm's chairman, said the company was motivated to invest in Zambia due to the country's political stability and favorable government policies.
AFICD, he said, was looking forward to a swift implementation of the project.
