The Chinese firm CRJE (East Africa) Limited has announced that the ongoing construction project at the National Institute of Transport (NIT), valued at 10.8bn/-, is expected to be officially handed over to the Institute in November this year.

The contracting firm is constructing two buildings at NIT as part of the Eastern Africa Skills for Transformation and Regional Integration Project (EASTRIP), which is funded by the World Bank. 

This initiative aims to support the Institute’s Regional Flagship TVET Center of Excellence in Aviation and Transport Operations (CoEATO).

Speaking during an interview at the construction site in Dar es Salaam yesterday, CRJE (East Africa) Limited Site Agent Dai Yanwei stated, “We are working at an accelerated pace, day and night, to ensure that the project is completed by November. We are in the final stages of installing doors, windows, and other finishes.”

In November 2022, NIT entered into a one-year agreement with CRJE (East Africa) Ltd to construct two buildings on the Institute’s main campus in Mabibo, Dar es Salaam.

“We were expected to finish this project one year after the signing, but we faced challenges after the commencement. Heavy rains in 2023 and delayed payments interrupted the completion timeline stipulated in the contract,” Yanwei explained.

However, company has been operating in Tanzania for 50 years since its establishment in 1969 to undertake the Great Uhuru Railway-TAZARA project with over 5,000 employees in East Africa. 

While expanding its business, the company strives to benefit local communities and foster positive relations between China and Tanzania.

Over the past 50 years, the company has completed a total of 3 million square meters of various engineering projects in Tanzania, including over 30 landmark projects such as the Nyerere Bridge, the New Parliamentary Debating Chamber, the Dodoma Convention Center, the University of Dodoma campus, Rita Tower, Uhuru Heights, and the Mwalimu Nyerere Foundation Square.

The company has set construction speed records in East Africa, completing one typical floor within six days and finishing the design and construction of the Dodoma Convention Center in just seven months, which has contributed to the “Dodoma Speed” phenomenon in Tanzania.

CRJE (East Africa) Ltd has market presence primarily in Tanzania while expanding into Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Mozambique, Ethiopia, and Malaysia.