ABSTRACT
The Lobito Development Corridor consists of a multi-modal transport system stretching from the port of Lobito across Angola into the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia. Between 2006 and 2014, the Benguela Railway, the corridor’s infrastructural backbone, was rehabilitated by a subsidiary of the China Railway Construction Corporation. The rehabilitation was funded by a resource-for-infrastructure loan arrangement with China Exim Bank. This chapter focuses on how the resumption of railway services along the corridor has affected development dynamics at the micro-level. This chapter first outlines the historical development of the corridor and the state of its infrastructure. This section is concerned with “development from above,” notably the political and economic contexts that shape(d) the rehabilitation of the Benguela Railway and current plans to extend the line. Second, this chapter contextualises the importance of the Benguela Railway for the Angolan and regional economies and, more specifically, assesses the possibility of an Agricultural Development Corridor and “development from below.” Third, based on qualitative field research conducted in 2014, 2015 and 2018, this chapter documents how the Lobito Corridor infrastructure interrelates with socio-economic dynamics along the corridor’s route, and it identifies remaining challenges for small-scale businesses, farmers and informal traders to access the economic opportunities that the new railway offers. Lastly, this chapter concludes that while the rehabilitation of the Benguela Railway has caused the reactivation of the Lobito Corridor, multiplier effects for the local economy and rural population are yet to be maximised.
