In Africa, a road built by Chinese companies is almost a household name. It crossed the no-man’s land and took 8 years to complete. As the only transportation route connecting the political center and the economic center of Congo (Brazzaville), it greatly improved the country’s land transportation level and was hailed as the “Dream Road” by the local people.

On March 1, 2016, the Congo (Brazzaville) National Highway No. 1 was fully completed. This highway, built by China State Construction Engineering Corporation (hereinafter referred to as "China State Construction"), is the largest cooperation project between China and Congo, with a total length of 536 kilometers. One-way travel time has been shortened from the previous week to 6 hours.

Congo (Brazzaville) President Sassou said that since the independence of Congo (Brazzaville), successive leaders have hoped to build this road, and it is Chinese builders who have fulfilled the dream of several generations of Congo (Brazzaville), "China is sincerely helping We grow the economy."

It is difficult to drive, and even more difficult to maintain. Due to the lack of road maintenance concepts and experience, the service life of roads in some African countries is often far less than expected, and the Congo (Brazzaville) National Highway No. 1 also faced the same dilemma.

In order to solve the problems of "difficulty in operation and maintenance", China State Construction proposed a "franchising" proposal to the Congolese (Brazzaville) government, and took the lead in establishing the Congo (Brazzaville) country with a French engineering design consulting company and the Congolese (Brazzaville) government. Highway 1 Concession Project Company (hereinafter referred to as "LCR"). In March 2019, LCR officially started operation. By adopting an international operation method, it can achieve the preservation, appreciation and sustainable development of highway assets while ensuring road safety to the greatest extent.

LCR fully embodies the complementary advantages of the tripartite cooperation between China, France and Congo: China State Construction Holdings operates as a holding company, making full use of the successful experience of China's rapid infrastructure development, coordinating operations, and coordinating the interests of all parties to achieve mutual benefit and win-win results; The social resources and communication advantages of the Congolese side; the Congolese side gives full play to the coordination role of the government, and provides support and assistance for the company to communicate with government departments and associations of transporters. This model has become a model of China-France-Africa tripartite mutually beneficial cooperation, providing a new model for Congo (Brazzaville) and even African road projects, and also opening up a new world for Chinese-funded enterprises to develop overseas.

On March 6, 2022, the LCR officially marked the third anniversary of its operation. Shi Honggang, Chairman of China Construction International Central and West Africa Company, told Xinhua News Agency that over the past three years, highway operation management has become more and more mature, tripartite cooperation has been steadily advanced, and project operation results have become increasingly apparent, laying a solid foundation for China State Construction to further temper its international team in the future. Successful attempts have been made for Chinese enterprises to transform their overseas business and create a multi-party cooperation model.

The Congolese (Brazzaville) government stated that the project is a creative reference for the Congolese side to solve the problem of difficult road operation and maintenance, which has greatly stimulated local employment, provided a large number of business opportunities for residents along the road, and raised the income level of residents. The project provides a comfortable and safe road for the Congolese (Brazzaville) people through advanced operation and maintenance measures, so that this economic artery can continue to serve the promotion of local economic revitalization and national economic growth.

Shi Honggang said that in the future, he will try to carry out the application of intelligent transportation technology on Highway No. 1 to create a "smart highway" to further benefit the local people.

Today, Congo (Brazzaville) National Highway No. 1 has become a beautiful landscape in the hinterland of Africa, and the urban and rural areas along the route have taken on a new look.

In Doliji, the third largest city in Congo (Brazzaville), where Highway No. 1 passes, there is a statue of "Mountain Splitter", which was erected by the local people to express their respect and gratitude to the Chinese builders.

Kezia, an employee of China State Construction Congo (Brazzaville) Company, said that happiness is the realization of dreams. She will continue to guard this "dream road" to ensure its safety and smoothness, so that the people of Congo (Brazzaville) can develop their economy through Highway No. 1. , Realize dreams and lead to a happy and beautiful future.Editor / Zhao E