Online Reporter
Golden Sibanda in Maputo, Mozambique
THE National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) is targeting to grow its hauled tonnage from 2,03 million tonnes in 2025 to 6 million tonnes by 2030, riding on a projected and sustained strong economic performance and the burgeoning mining industry.
The anticipated growth will, however, partly depend on the national rail operator obtaining the expected rolling stock and critical equipment to bolster its handling capacity.
Some of the major challenges facing NRZ include trains and wagons breaking down frequently due to old age. The rail operator also does not have enough operational engines to meet cargo demand, while vandalism and limited investment have left parts of the rail network dilapidated.
Zimbabwe remains on a solid growth trajectory, with the economy projected to expand by a conservative 5 percent this year, driven by deepening macroeconomic stability, booming mining and manufacturing sectors, and strong global commodity prices, especially for gold and platinum.
Zimbabwe expects an average annual Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate of 7 percent for the period 2026 to 2030, as enunciated under its National Development Strategy 2 (NDS2).
NRZ public affairs and stakeholder relations manager, Mr Andrew Kunambura, said Zimbabwe’s economy was booming, mining was expanding, and agriculture was doing well, creating a fertile ground for NRZ to drive volume growth.
He said this in an interview on the sidelines of the ongoing Maputo International Trade Fair (FACIM) 2026, where 20 Zimbabwean companies are exhibiting under the ZimTrade pavilion.
The fair opened on August 31, 2026 and runs until September 7, 2026. Nearly 3 000 exhibitors from over 29 countries are attending the 61st edition of FACIM 2026.
Mozambique’s premier multi-sectoral trade exhibition brings together businesses, investors, government officials, and buyers from across Africa and beyond.
The theme for FACIM 2026 is “Digital and Energy Transformation for a Sustainable Economy”.
Zimbabwean exhibitors at FACIM, including small and medium enterprises, have been drawn from across the key economic sectors of agriculture, agro-processing, manufacturing, transport and logistics, engineering, forestry, tourism, distribution, and the handicrafting industry.
Zimbabwean companies, led by ZimTrade, are participating in FACIM as part of a national effort to expand their market presence and increase trade exports in Mozambique.
Zimbabwe targets an annual export growth rate of at least 10 percent for goods and 15 percent for services, in its quest to reach US$14,5 billion in exports over the next five years, as part of Vision 2030 to transform into an upper-middle-income country.
Harare’s exports to Mozambique rose 4 percent, from US$255.1 million in 2024 to US$266,2 million in 2025, making Mozambique a critical regional partner. Mozambique remains one of Zimbabwe’s key trading partners and a significant market for locally manufactured and processed products.
Speaking ahead of FACIM 2026, ZimTrade chief executive officer, Mr Allan Majuru, said this year’s fair had come at a particularly favourable time for Zimbabwean businesses, given the strengthening economic relations between
Harare and Maputo and the growing demand for locally produced goods in the neighbouring market.
While economic growth and output expansion in key sectors of agriculture and mining are expected to drive NRZ volume growth, Mr Kunambura also noted the positive impact and role of the partnership with Mozambique’s CFM (Mozambique Ports and Railways).
CFM is Mozambique’s state-owned public enterprise responsible for managing and operating the country’s national railway and port systems.
“We work collaboratively with Mozambique Ports and Rail. It’s a company that runs ports and rail systems in Mozambique. It owns the infrastructure and the rolling stock. As in all jurisdictions, everywhere you go in the world, the nature of the railway is that it connects regions and nations.
“If CFM has a customer in Harare who wants to import diesel from the Middle East and carry it by vessel, and the vessel offloads at Maputo Port into tankers, it becomes a customer for CFM.
“CFM will transport the fuel all the way to the border with Zimbabwe, at Chikwalakwala.
“Once the diesel crosses into Zimbabwe, and in line with customs procedures, the customer becomes an NRZ customer, and it means we take over automatically and hire the loaded wagons from CFM because we cannot offload the fuel at the border.
“We hire the tankers so that we can proceed with the fuel load to the customer in either Harare or Bulawayo. So what it means is that it’s an arrangement where tankers from one jurisdiction cannot cross into another jurisdiction unless you have them.
“So, it’s a revenue-sharing agreement, which means that the transporter with the longer distance is entitled to more money from the customer,” he said.
Mr Kunambura said that the country’s strong growth trajectory, driven by mining, manufacturing, and agriculture, means that NRZ’s plans to grow volumes will get significant impetus between 2026 and 2030.
“Definitely, the country’s economy is growing, the mining industry is booming, the manufacturing industry is rebounding, agriculture is up there, and we cannot lag as NRZ.
“Because we export almost exclusively through Beira or Maputo (for bulky goods), the biggest share of our revenue comes from freight,” Mr Kunambura said.
NRZ and CFM work together under a revenue-sharing arrangement, where each hauls goods up to each other’s national border, and the operator responsible for the jurisdiction from the border to the final destination takes over and receives the share of revenue commensurate with the distance it covers.
“This is strategically important in that we, as Zimbabwe, are mostly the source of the cargo, especially key minerals such as coal required beyond Africa, and lithium, which comes from across the country, including Sandawana in Zvishavane and, recently, Gwanda. The lithium will be going to China and other places globally.
“We also have chrome from the Great Dyke going to China and other Asian markets. What it means is that we facilitate international trade for Zimbabwe and Mozambique, and we have a healthy brotherly and sisterly relationship with this country called Mozambique so that we can collaboratively develop our economies together,” Mr Kunambura said.
He acknowledged that NRZ faces several constraints to performing at optimal levels, including limited locomotives and rolling stock to meet growing demand, as well as aged equipment, but stressed that efforts were under way to resolve the challenges, with strong support from the Government.
“We simply have to up the game in terms of making sure enough rolling stock is available. There are many undertakings facilitated by us and by the shareholder that are being addressed, and we are happy that the shareholder understands the urgency of the matter and is willing to come on board,” he said.
According to Mr Kunambura, the volume hauled under the arrangement with CFM, from exports via the ports of Beira and Maputo in Mozambique, contributes the largest chunk of revenue generated by NRZ.
He said the bulk of the cargo moved by NRZ comprises minerals such as chrome, lithium, and coal, alongside other bulk cargo imported and exported to and from Zimbabwe into or from regional markets and beyond.
