Tanzania to receive World Bank funding for Dar es Salaam port expansion

The World Bank has agreed to give Tanzania a $305 million loan to expand the port of Dar es Salaam located in the main commercial city.

The loan is part of a $785 million loan from the Bank that the Tanzanian government is seeking to execute development projects in the east African economy.

“The World Bank has agreed to give Tanzania loans for various development projects, including a credit of $305 million for an expansion project at the Dar es Salaam port,” Finance and Planning Minister Philip Mpango said in a statement.

The loan deal was announced following talks in the capital between president John Magufuli and Makhtar Diop, the World Bank’s vice president for Africa.

In a 2014 report, the World Bank said that inefficiencies at the port was costing Tanzania and its neighbours up to $2.6 billion annually.

The port is a trade gateway for land lock countries such as Zambia , Rwanda Malawi, Burundi,Uganda and eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

The Tanzanian government hopes that its capacity will reach 28 million tonnes a year by 2020 from the current 15 million tonnes.