The Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (Tazara) has announced it has shortlisted China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) to submit a proposal for the concession to operate the Tanzania-Zambia transnational rail line.

Tanzania and Zambia are planning to revamp the aging Tazara railway, which has been in operation since 1976. The railway, which transports both freight and passengers, provides landlocked Zambia with an alternative route to Tanzania's Port of Dar es Salaam, reducing reliance on rail lines through Zimbabwe, South Africa, and Mozambique. Stretching 1,860 km, the Tazara railway begins at the Port of Dar es Salaam and traverses Tanzania in a southwesterly direction, intersecting the Tan-Zam highway at Makambako and running parallel towards Mbeya and the Zambian border. Upon entering Zambia, it connects with Zambia Railways at Kapiri Mposhi. The railway boasts 300 bridges, 23 tunnels, and 147 stations and is designed with a 1,067 mm gauge, allowing compatibility with all railway networks in Southern Africa. Tazara forms an integral part of Sino-African relations.

CCECC, a subsidiary of the China Railway Construction Corporation, is anticipated to enter into a public-private partnership concession with Tanzania and Zambia to operate Tazara under a build-operate-transfer model at an estimated cost of US$1 billion.