Apparently, in the bank’s efforts to promote economic growth and regional integration within the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the African Development Bank has approved a U.S.$ 95.6 million loan for the Nacala Corridor Phase II Road project (NCRP) in Zambia.
However, I am not sure about the assertion that “the work will enhance poverty reduction efforts in Zambia and will promote the empowerment of women and other disadvantaged groups through better socioeconomic infrastructure along the road.” Outside of the potential trickle-around effects, empowerment is not the term I would associate with this project.
Yes, SADC needs reliable and efficient transport infrastructures. Yes, better road safety is critical for the region’s sustainable development. But what the Nacal project is not doing is seeing women and the disadvantage groups along the corridor as development partners. Empowerment is best done when people are given opportunities to participate as co-owners.
Like the need to rebuild the transportation infrastructure, there is as big a need to involve local people (especially women and disadvantages groups) in this kind of projects, as an example of how an effective economic model empowers people.
Given the reality that most of the land intersected by the Nacala Road Corridor is land used for local cultivation, I would have loved to see some sort of a joint venture with the affected communities. To the contrary, last time I heard, partners vying to acquire stake in the Nacala project in all the SADC countries involved were not women or disadvantage groups but multi-nationals like Hutchison Whampoa Ltd, of Hong Kong,, South Africa’s Grindrod and an unnamed Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates) company.
Now you tell me who is being empowered here? All over again, this smells like Namibia and Botswana’s Trans Kalahari Highway (TKH), now referred as the Trans Kalahari Corridor (TKC) which had similar policy objectives. For all the promises of economic growth, integration, and empowerment, the TKC remains a white elephant.
