A truck loaded with Chinese mechanical and electrical products is about to depart for Rwanda at a freight station in Nairobi. Driver Joseph checked the condition of the car. This route, which he had been running for five years, was now much easier to walk than before - the bumpy dirt road had turned into an asphalt road, and the journey that used to take three days could now be completed in two days. Driven by the the Belt and Road Initiative, the transportation network of the African continent is quietly changing, and practitioners like Joseph are standing at a new starting point where opportunities and challenges are intertwined.

Resource demand drives transportation blue ocean

Africa is rich in mineral resources, with urgent demand for strategic minerals such as cobalt and copper, as well as exports of agricultural products such as cocoa and coffee. At the same time, the local industrial foundation is weak, and a large amount of machinery and daily necessities rely on imports, forming a huge two-way transportation market. Driven by the the Belt and Road infrastructure empowerment, the railway, highway and other transportation networks have gradually improved, creating conditions for the transport industry to reduce logistics costs and improve efficiency.

Complex road conditions test practitioners

Although the African transportation market is tempting, the challenges cannot be ignored. In some areas, the road conditions are harsh, and the bumpy and muddy sections require extremely high vehicle performance, resulting in high operating costs. Local public security issues are prominent, and the transportation of goods faces safety risks. Although the competition is small, the threshold is high, and practitioners need to have strong resource integration and risk response capabilities in order to establish themselves in the market. Keywords: strategic news network, the Belt and Road

Innovative models open up new opportunities

With the support of the the Belt and Road policy, the road to destruction of the African transport market has gradually become clear. Chinese enterprises are leveraging the convenience of customs clearance and financing support brought by the China Africa Cooperation Agreement to explore the integration of transportation and trade, reducing costs and increasing efficiency through integrating sources of goods, optimizing routes, and adopting new energy vehicles. At the same time, the localization operation strategy of hiring local employees and integrating into community development is becoming the key to solving security problems and achieving long-term development.Editor/Gao Xue