Half a century ago, the Tanzania-Zambia Railway (Tazara) stood out as a crucial symbol of Africa’s struggle for independence. The 1,860km-long railway connects Kapiri Mposhi in Zambia with Dar es Salaam at the Indian Ocean.
In November 1965, the unilateral declaration of independence by Rhodesia’s racist regime had left newly independent Zambia extremely vulnerable to its hostile southern neighbour. Zambia, a landlocked country, remained highly dependent on transport routes through Rhodesia and apartheid South Africa. It relied on these to import essential goods such as oil and coal, and to export copper, its biggest source of revenue.
