Malawi Railways is the national rail network in

Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeas ...

, run by a government corporation until privatisation in 1999. As of 1 December 1999 the

Central East African Railways Central East African Railways is a consortium formed in 1999, led by the Railroad Development Corporation, which won the right to operate the Malawi Railways network. The company was sold in September 2008 to INSITEC, an investment group based in ...

, a consortium led by

Railroad Development Corporation The Railroad Development Corporation is an American railroad holding company based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It operates several short line railroads outside the United States and acts as an investor, with management and institutional inves ...

, won the right to operate the network. The rail network totalled 797 kilometres in 2001. Like most railways in Southern Africa, it is entirely to Cape gauge, i.e. 1067mm gauge.

Maps

UN Map

Railway links with adjacent countries

Mozambique

In the city of

Nkaya Nkaya, also known as Nacaia, is a town in Malawi, located in the district of Balaka and in the Southern Region of the country. Its economy is predominantly agricultural, but it has an important logistics sector, as it serves as the junction point ...

there is an interconnection between the

Nacala railway Nacala railway, also known as Northern Corridor railway and Nacala Corridor railway, is a railway line that operates in northern Mozambique on a lineGarcia, Ana.; Kato, Karina.Politicas Públicas e Interesses Privadas: uma análise a partir do Cor ...

and the

Sena railway Sena railway, also called Shire Highlands railway, Dondo-Malawi railway and North-South Malawi railway, is a railway that connects Dondo, Mozambique, to Chipata, in Zambia. It is 1000 km long, in a 1067 mm gauge.Port of Nacala The Port of Nacala, also called the Nacala port complex, is a Mozambican port located in the cities of Nacala and Nacala-a-Velha. Is the deepest port in Southern Africa. The natural deep harbour serves landlocked Malawi with a railway. The in ...

in the east, and in the northwest of Mozambique, in the

Moatize Moatize is the principal town and administrative center of Moatize District in western Mozambique's Tete Province. It is located on the eastern side of the Zambezi River at the confluence of the Moatize and Revuboe Rivers. After Tete, it is the ...

coal mines. Via the Sena railway (or Shire Highlands railway), there is a connection between the cities of Mchinji, Lilongue, Salima, Nkaya, Blantyre, Nsanje, Nhamayabué, Dondo and Port of Beira. The

line (Nacala Corridor line) to

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

via Nkaya to the port of

Nacala Nacala, also known as Cidade de Nacala or Nacala-Porto is a city on the northern coast of Mozambique. Located in the southwestern indentation of inner Fernao Veloso Bay, it is the deepest natural port on the east coast of Africa. Nacala serves as ...

; by the

Sena railway Sena railway, also called Shire Highlands railway, Dondo-Malawi railway and North-South Malawi railway, is a railway that connects Dondo, Mozambique, to Chipata, in Zambia. It is 1000 km long, in a 1067 mm gauge.Nkaya Nkaya, also known as Nacaia, is a town in Malawi, located in the district of Balaka and in the Southern Region of the country. Its economy is predominantly agricultural, but it has an important logistics sector, as it serves as the junction point ...

to the Nhamayabué (

Dona Ana Bridge The Dona Ana Bridge spans the lower Zambezi River between the towns of Vila de Sena and Mutarara in Mozambique, effectively linking the two halves of the country. It was originally constructed as a railway bridge to link Malawi and the Moatize c ...

) and Beira, has not been operational since the war in Mozambique and is in need of reconstruction. In April 2011, the Malawi government and the Brazilian mining company Vale signed an agreement to construct a short cut railway line from coal mines in

Blantyre Blantyre () is Malawi's centre of finance and commerce, and its second largest city, with an enumerated 800,264 inhabitants . It is sometimes referred to as the commercial and industrial capital of Malawi as opposed to the political capital, L ...

, where it would connect with tracks to the port of

Tanzania and Zambia

In 2015, an extension of the Chipata line to a junction with the

TAZARA The Tazara Railway, also called the Uhuru Railway or the Tanzam Railway, is a railway in East Africa linking the port of Dar es Salaam in east Tanzania with the town of Kapiri Mposhi in Zambia's Central Province. The single-track railway is ...

line at

Serenje Serenje is a town of Serenje District, Zambia, lying just off the Great North Road and TAZARA Railway. Serenje has a railway station on the TAZARA railway. Serenje is approximately 191 km from Kapiri Mposhi on the Great North Road. Mkus ...

was proposed. In 2016, the contract was awarded. There is no direct link with neighbouring

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...

as there is a /

break of gauge With railways, a break of gauge occurs where a line of one track gauge (the distance between the rails, or between the wheels of trains designed to run on those rails) meets a line of a different gauge. Trains and rolling stock generally cannot ...

. A rail link to Chipata in

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...

was completed in 1984, but a connection onward into Zambia was only opened in 2010. This line remains idle because there are few facilities at Chipata.

References

Notes

External links

{{Africa in topic, Rail transport in