The Government of India wants to support Mozambique to make public transport electronically powered. There are still no concrete plans, but this is Mozambique’s focus in cooperation with that Asian country in the area of transport.
Rail transport is the most used way for Indians to move around the 28 states and seven federal territories.
On a visit to Mozambique, the Indian Foreign Minister, Subrahmanyan Jaishankar, went to the Mozambique Railways Central Station and took a train trip with the Mozambican Minister of Transport and Communications, Mateus Magala.
Before entering the railcar, the two leaders shook hands. It is a handshake from those who previously signed an agreement for this and four other railcars to come to Mozambique.
Not only that, at a cost of US$95 million, the purchase of five locomotives and 90 carriages was also financed; hence it was important to make a trip from Maputo central station to Machava, in Matola.
“We want to assess the utility level of these vehicles. The railways are green. We want more people traveling by rail and less by road. And this railcar, in particular, is very convenient because it has motors on both sides and it can move from one side to the other comfortably.”
However, the glories of the past do not limit the dreams of those who want to see more and better, which is why the two directors have shown themselves to be willing to have more collaborations. “We are here to cooperate in a way that is useful for both parties and, therefore, I always want to hear the priorities … because the Indian form of cooperation is to cover the partner’s priorities”, he said.
And the Minister of Transport and Communications of Mozambique, Mateus Magala, said that, in this cooperation with India, the focus has been properly identified and is, precisely, “the facilitation of the movement of goods and, mainly, of people, but also to make a transition to what we call electronic mobility, ie green; electric cars, buses and electric trains”.
With the focus and plans well identified, now it’s just a matter of rolling up our sleeves and getting to work, in fact, ideas at the table. The diplomatic work between the governments, according to the minister, has only just begun, but “we had already started talking to some Indian companies regarding it and I think that now we can go even further”, he guaranteed.
After returning to Matola and returning to the country’s capital, the two officials visited the carriage, also imported from India and containing different classes for different types and capacities of passengers.