Namibia and Botswana are working to ensure that the N$200 billion Trans-Kalahari Railway project is delivered by the end of this year.

President Duma Boko recently addressed the Botswana-South Africa Business Forum in Gaborone, saying Botswana and Namibia remain focused on accelerating the implementation of the long-delayed project.

Boko's expectation is that the discussions which took place in Namibia will reinforce cooperation on project planning and execution.

"I have had a conversation with Namibia. I sent a deputation a week ago. They came back and said the president of Namibia, Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, says this project must be delivered. And I say the same thing. We are going to deliver it. And we are going to have it delivered. We want it delivered this year. Now these corridors are taking shape, having been at the conception stage for too long. Now is the time for action," remarked Boko. 

For more than a decade, the project has been a dream on paper, discussed at summits, debated in meetings, and mapped out on power points.

Now, after 17 years, the 1690 kilometre railway linking Botswana's Mmamabula coalfields to Namibia's Port of Walvis Bay appears to be shifting from plan to reality.