WBCG remains at the forefront of corridor management

JICA’s expert team member, Mr. Yoji Sakakibara says the Walvis Bay Corridor Group is one of the top-level corridor management institutions in the world. Mr. Sakakibara made this remark whilst speaking to WBCG’s communications department about corridor development and management.

As corridor management is about getting various parties to co-produce plans and policies and to implement interventions that complement efforts to improve overall corridor performance, Mr. Sakakibara says the Group’s operation as a PPP (Public Private Partnership) modality is very unique and has both the advantages of an government and private organisation. “Corridor management institutions need to have high-level coordination capacity between government and the private sector. It is necessary for them to have a deep understanding of both public and private activities”, he says.

WBCG’s jurisdiction befalls management of the Walvis Bay corridors through the facilitation of corridor and infrastructure development as well as engaging in business development activities affecting these routes. An integrated system of well-maintained tarred roads and rail networks providing landlocked SADC countries access to the global market, the Walvis Bay corridors serves the Ports of Walvis Bay and Lüderitz in Namibia with a network of transport routes from Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

In order to further expedite the capacity to manage, support and expand the mobility of freight in conjunction with other underlying factors, WBCG’s Logistics Hub Project was conceived under the National Development Plan 4. The objective is to place sustainable institutional arrangements and mechanisms that would ensure the transformation of the Port of Walvis Bay and the Walvis Bay Corridors into economic corridors for the socio economic growth and development of the country. WBCG has since displayed an array of achievements and accolades in the transport and logistics industry.

As part of the team, comprised of the National Planning Commission and the Ministry of Works and Transport, JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency) established the International Logistic Hub Master Plan for SADC Countries in 2015. Since then, JICA provided technical assistance to achieve the Vision of the Master Plan: To transform Namibia as a whole nation into an international logistics hub for SADC region by 2025.