On 11 October, 2023, CCTTFA was a witness to the signing of three (3) contracts between the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania and a Turkish company for the construction of 3 vessels. The signing ceremony took place at the Kigoma port on the shore of Lake Tanganyika and CCTTFA Secretariat on behalf of the Executive Secretary was represented by Ms. Grace Kutemba, Director of Communication and Advocacy.

The three contracts were signed between Marine Services Company Limited (MSCL) on behalf of the Tanzanian government and Dearsan Shipyard from turkey for the construction of:

  1. A modern Shipyard with the capacity to handle vessels of more than 5000 metric tons on Lake Tanganyika and will boost efficiency of Cross-Border Trade along the Central Corridor. The modern Shipyard will have several workshops and a slipway.
  2. One RO-RO vessel with capacity of 3500 metric tons on Lake Tanganyika
  3. One RO-RO vessel with the capacity of 3000 metric tons on Lake Victoria

Construction work is expected to commence in January 2024 for a period of 3 years for the shipyard and 2 years for each RO-RO vessels. This work is part of the Tanzania government commitment and contribution for the implementation of the Tanzania-DRC Transport Infrastructure development Programme which is coordinated and championed by CCTTFA.