Lusaka-Ndola Dual Carriageway Corruption
Staged Robbery of Pension Funds
…Financing model of Lusaka-Ndola Dual Carriageway amounts to raid and theft of public funds…
By Amb. Emmanuel Mwamba
President Hakainde Hichilema is scheduled to launch the construction of the Lusaka-Ndola Dual Carriageway.
On 28th February 2023, the Government Republic of Zambia signed a US$650m, 25-year Public Private Partnership (PPP) Concession Agreement with Macro Oceans Investment Consortium (MOIC) to construct a 327km dual-carriageway between Lusaka and Ndola.
MOIC-LN Consortium, was engaged to upgrade to dual carriageway approximately 327 kilometres of the Lusaka-Ndola Road including rehabilitation of the 45 kilometres of the Luanshya-Fisenge-Masangano Road.
This project purports to be a Public-Private Partnership (PPP).
But the Financing Model betrays the allegation that this is a PPP project.
Government announced that MOIC-LN will obtain $650million financing from two public pension houses; National Pension Scheme Authority(NAPSA) and Workers’ Compensation Fund Control Board(WCFCB).
NAPSA and WCFCB are public entities with their Boards and Management appointed by President Hakainde Hichilema as the President appoints the Minister, who appoints the Board and Management of the two pension houses.
Further the toll gates and its subsequent stream of revenue have been taken over by the MOIC-LN contractor.
This is clearly not a PPP but a publicly funded project, a day-light staged robbery, with revenue going to a private entity for the next 25 years.
Yes, with the traffic on this road, MOIC-LN will quickly repay the loan, probably in the first 3-5 years. And mint billions for the rest of the life of the Concession.
Last year alone, the National Road Fund Agency (NRFA) collected K2.9bn from toll gates on the Lusaka – Ndola circuit in 2023.
Before the contractor even increases the fees, this is $2.5billion in 23 years.
Look at this. NAPSA hired a contractor to build a $100million hotel, and has contracted Radisson Blue as managers to run their hotel in Livingstone.
Why is NAPSA being forced to lend these huge funds to a private entity? If this project was this lucrative, NAPSA would have been allowed to build the dual carriageway away and contract NRFA and RDA to collect toll fees and conduct regular repairs on the stretches.
Similarly if this project is so lucrative, the MOIC-LN would have exercised its international links and bring financing to the project, obtain loans from banks or private pension entities like AfLife, than unfairly and corruptly target public pension funds.
Why raid public funds in this way and rob the pension funds of reliable income?
This is a dirty deal whatever their justification. This is day-light robbery of public funds
