U.S. President Joe Biden met African leaders in the Angolan port of Lobito on Wednesday to advance a plan to extend a railway that could channel critical minerals from Congo and Zambia to the West via Lobito, and counter Chinese clout in the region.
As things stand, China is the main foreign player in Democratic Republic of Congo’s mining sector, which exports minerals considered critical for batteries and other industrial components key to transitioning away from fossil fuels.
The United States has provided a $550 million loan to support the Lobito venture, which involves refurbishing an existing railway through Angola and extending it into Congo’s mining heartland as part of the first phase.
No date has been given for its completion yet, while a second phase that would link Lobito to Zambia via a new railway line is still at the preparation stage, with an aim to break ground in 2026 according to Washington.
The presidents of Angola, Congo and Zambia and the vice president of Tanzania joined Biden for a summit in Lobito on the last day of his first and only trip to Africa as president.
Biden and Congo’s Felix Tshisekedi affirmed their commitment to promoting investment and peace to allow the central African nation to make the most of its vast mineral wealth, according to a note from the White House issued after the two met.
Biden and Zambian counterpart Hakainde Hichilema also met to discuss the Zambian component of the Lobito project and other issues.
“This corridor is of vital importance to opening up our countries, to opening up our regions, the continent, and truly the global economy,” Hichilema said. “This project is a huge opportunity for investment, for trade.”
“The presidents underscored their conviction,” a White House statement said, “that countries should not be held back from investing in their development by the need to service unsustainably high debt, and together committed to continue advocating for reform.”
In June, Zambia’s international bondholders voted through their part of a $13.4 billion debt restructuring deal, making Zambia the first to complete a full-blown rework under the G20-led “Common Framework” architecture.
