South Korean companies set to transform Tanzania economy under Vision 2050

Targeting to achieve an Upper-middle income status through the envisaged National Vision, DIRA 2050 blueprint, the Tanzanian government is working jointly with its partners for development of infrastructure across the country.

The government had contracted South Korean engineering companies for designing, planning and implementing key infrastructure development projects that would make the country achieve its ambitious and highly envisaged DIRA 2050 the next 25 years.

South Korean engineering companies are currently the key partners for infrastructure development in Tanzania that would steer ahead economic growth through transport, land utilization, natural resources, water, commerce and trade.

At the heart of Tanzania’s National Vision (DIRA) 2050 lies an ambition to achieve economic take-off built on the foundation of robust infrastructure.

Walking alongside the nation on this historic journey is Cheil Engineering, which is one of South Korea’s leading global engineering firms.

Cheil engineering is now serving as a pivotal partner in that vision.

Founded in 1988 and having successfully delivered more than 9,000 projects worldwide, Cheil Engineering holds a unique distinction in Tanzania as the first Korean company of any kind to establish a foothold in the country.

With a workforce of over 1,000 employees, including more than 900 specialized technical experts, the company has leveraged its deep-rooted local trust, accumulated over many years on the ground, to firmly transplant Korea’s advanced engineering know-how into Tanzanian soil.

With Tanzania as its regional hub, Cheil Engineering now spearhead national infrastructure projects across Kenya, Uganda, Sudan, Zambia, Eswatini and Ghana, elevating the global stature of “K-Engineering” across the African continent.

Cheil Engineering is currently implementing Railway Renaissance, targeting to strengthen East African Connectivity through the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) from Dar es Salaam to the Lake Zone and the Southern Corridor from Mtwara Port on the Indian Ocean to Mbamba Bay on Lake Nyasa.

In the Railway sector, Cheil Engineering’s role extends across Tanzania and well beyond its borders, said Mr. Hojong Yang, Cheil Engineering’s Regional Manager in Tanzania.

Working in partnership with Tanzania Railways Corporation (TRC), Cheil Engineering is serving as a central player in railway modernization on the Standard Gauge railway (SGR) project.

The company is currently working and overseeing design review and construction supervision for the expansive Dar es Salaam to Mwanza SGR corridor.

Most notably, the recently launched consulting engagement for the Uvinza to Msongati section will directly link Tanzania with Burundi, positioning this line as a critical artery of the integrated East African logistics network.

Cheil engineering had also carried out a successful Feasibility Study and Preliminary Design for the Mtwara to Mbamba Bay Railway Line, a key rail corridor in Tanzania’s southern economic zone, Mr. Yang said.

Amid the recent surge in mining development, the strategic value of this line is climbing rapidly.

By enabling the efficient transport ​system of the interior’s rich natural resources to the Port of Mtwara, this rail network stands to become a cornerstone asset in transforming Tanzania into a logistics hub for Africa’s resource econom​y.

At the heart of a Logistics Revolution, the Kibaha to Morogoro Highway is yet another milestone project under Cheil Engineering consultancy.

The highway construction will be implemented under Public Private Partnership (PPP) which is Tanzania’s first ever public private partnership (PPP) road project.

Kibaha to Morogoro highway is Tanzania’s primary logistics artery, connecting the Port of Dar es Salaam to the country’s mainland and neighboring states.

Through Cheil Engineering’s technical consulting, the existing two-lane road is being transformed into a modern four-lane plus highway.

Once completed, the travel time between Dar es Salaam and Morogoro will be slashed from 4.5 hours of severe congestion to just 1.5 hours.

The Kibaha to Morogoro highway project is expected to reduce Tanzania’s logistics costs and serve as a powerful engine propelling the national economy towards one trillion US dollars (US$1 trillion) economic milestone.

Currently, the firm is overseeing construction supervision for the JP Magufuli Bridge, the Kigongo Busisi Bridge, a 3.2 kilometers mega-structure stretching across Lake Victoria to directly link Mwanza and Geita regions.

Upon its completion, a journey that required hours of waiting for ferry crossings will take mere minutes, invigorating cross-border trade with neighboring countries and generating powerful ripple effects across the regional economy.

Another project under Cheil Engineering consultancy is the Dar es Salaam Metropolitan Water Resources, said Mr. Yang.

Cheil Engineering has equally been committed to expand water infrastructure as the lifeblood of both public health and industrial competitiveness.

The company is currently carrying out a feasibility study for development of water supply in Dar es Salaam.

The “Securing the Future Water Resources of Dar es Salaam feasibility (Phase 2)” is a nationally significant initiative aimed at tapping new water sources, such as the lower Rufiji River basin, to fundamentally resolve the water shortages facing the rapidly growing economic capital.

Alongside this, Cheil Engineering successfully completed the upgrade of water and sewerage facilities in Arush​a​Implemented through the Arusha Urban Water Supply and Sanitation Authority (AUWSA​) and the African Development Bank (AfDB), enhancing the environment of this key tourism city, and is currently playing an active role in the Dodoma Metropolitan Sewage Service Improvement Project (DUWASA, EDCF) to help safeguard the sanitation of the capital, Dodoma.

Upon its implementation under Cheil Engineering, the water supply project will also deliver safe drinking water to underserved communities thus contributing to the realization of universal welfare through Tanzania.

Mr. Yang has so far underscored a value that reaches far beyond infrastructure construction alone

“What we deliver is not merely a set of design drawings. It is the engineering knowhow that once underpinned Korea’s own economic rise together with the capacity building of Tanzania’s local engineering talent into a sustainable system,” he added.

“As the first Korean company ever to enter Tanzania, we carry that pioneering identity with deep pride. We will continue to share knowledge with the country’s next generation of engineers and act as a “Technology partner” Mr. Yang said.

He said that Cheil Engineering will make sure that Tanzania’s envisaged DIRA 2050 translates into tangible change that ordinary Tanzanians can truly feel in their lives every day.

“Going forward, across Tanzania and throughout Africa, we will set the standard for environmentally responsible and sustainable engineering – one that respects the natural environment and grows together with the communities we serve”, Mr. Yang said.

Tanzania is currently co-operating with other member states of the East African Community (EAC) on development of road and rail transport, targeting to speed up cargo movements within the East Africa region.