Years ago, the rainy season in the Arnoxi region always turned dirt roads into muddy ponds, making it difficult to transport fish, and children had to wade through the water for half a day to go to school. On June 13, 2026, colorful flags fluttered in the suburbs of Taolanaru, and the smooth and dark asphalt road extended towards the distant mountains for the first time. Local people dressed in costumes gathered around the brand new road signs, watching as Madagascar's interim head of state, Landrianirina, announced that the first section of the first phase of National Highway 12 had been officially completed and opened to traffic. When the national leader smiled and asked everyone if they were satisfied, the crowd shouted out a positive answer in unison. On the side, Qiu Yuliang, Deputy General Manager of China Railway 18th Bureau Group International Company, looked at this road that had been dedicated to years of hard work, and the ceremonial cannon for the second phase of the construction ceremony was already being prepared.

The first section of National Highway 12 Phase I is located in the Arnoxi Region of Madagascar, with a total length of about 45 kilometers. Five new bridges will be built along the way to cross seasonal river valleys. As an important component of improving the national highway network in Malaysia, it connects inland villages and towns with the southeast seaport. After its opening, the sections that originally needed to be detoured or trekked through become smooth and direct, and the long dormant economic corridor in the southeast has been truly awakened by local media.

According to China Railway 18th Bureau, this road will significantly improve local transportation conditions, effectively reduce logistics transportation costs, improve the efficiency of seafood transportation along the route, and enable the catch caught on the same day to reach the refrigerated distribution center faster. At the same time, mining and ecotourism in the radiation area of the highway will also receive more stable land support, which is expected to create more employment and business opportunities for villages and towns along the route.

On the day of the completion ceremony, China Railway 18th Bureau Group simultaneously held the groundbreaking ceremony for the Phase II project of National Highway 12. The second phase of the project will continue to expand the coverage of the road network and further open up the transportation channel for resources in the southeast. This is also another practical result of the continuous deepening of cooperation between Chinese enterprises and Madagascar in the field of infrastructure and the promotion of connectivity along the the Belt and Road.keywords:Engineering infrastructure

Now, the first truck loaded with goods has sailed onto the new bridge, and fishermen and miners in the Arnoxi region know that the road to the outside world is finally no longer the quagmire of the rainy season, but a smooth path to the market.Editor/Yang Meiling