MAPUTO, June 25 (Reuters) - The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved two loans totalling $181 million to Mozambique and Malawi to finance the construction of the first phase of a road corridor linking the two countries and Zambia.

The bank said in a statement that the road between the Indian Ocean port of Nacala in northern Mozambique and the eastern and northern areas of Zambia would improve transport services and access to markets for the communities in the area.

"The ultimate objective of the project is to support economic growth in the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) region and foster regional integration through reliable, efficient and seamless transport infrastructure to improve the competitiveness of the region," the bank said.

The Nacala Road Corridor project is 1033 kilometres of road works and two one-stop border posts between Mozambique and Malawi and the other between Malawi and Zambia.

The government plans to use the Nacala port as an alternative to the highly congested Mombasa and Tanzania's Dar Es Salaam ports. (Editing by Phumza Macanda/Toby Chopra)

AlertNet news is provided by