An African country now boasts the continent’s longest suspension bridge, a £600 million infrastructure marvel designed to enhance connectivity and stimulate economic growth.
According to express.co.uk, The Maputo–Katembe bridge connects Maputo with Katembe, an urban centre outside of the capital.
The structure, which measures nearly 10,000ft in length, is the longest suspension bridge on the Afircan continent, replacing the Matadi Bridge, for this distinction.
The bridge was built as part of China’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative as Beijing invests heavily in infrastructure projects across the developing world.
Before it was built, the quickest way to travel between Maputo and Kstembe was via ferry. Meanwhile, driving between the two urban centres required a 100 mile journey on unpaved roads that often flood.
Construction started in 2014, and was completed by 2018.
Some have argued that the bridge was overpriced and that the interest on the loan from China was excessive.
Plans for a bridge in Maputo date back as far as 1989, when the World Bank financed an urbanisation project with the inclusion of a new bridge.
When the Mozambician civil war ended in 1992, there was an investment boom in the country in a number of industries, including natural resources.
In 2008, Mozambique expressed interest in building the bridge, but an economic crisis two years later meant it was stalled.
Construction was eventually able to start in 2014.
Mozambican publicist Carlos Nuno Castel-Branco criticised the cost of the bridge, arguing that it could have been built at a seventh of the price.
Former mayor of Maputo, Eneas Comiche, also hit out at the hefty costs.
In September, China vowed to spend an additional $50billion (£38billion) on various infrastructure projects
Chinese President Xi Jinping hit out at the West while addressing African leaders at the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation summit.
He said: “The Western modernization process has brought profound suffering to the vast majority of developing countries.
“As the world undergoes changes unseen in a century, we stand shoulder to shoulder, hand in hand, to resolutely defend each other’s legitimate interests.”
