South African state rail-freight operator Transnet is embarking on a major expansion drive in the rest of the continent, offsetting a slowdown at home caused by the slump in commodity prices, chief executive Siyabonga Gama said on Wednesday.

Transnet, which operates nearly three-quarters of all Africa’s rail network, was opening offices in West and East Africa and looking to deploy its expertise in running ports and pipelines as well as rail, Gama told Reuters on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum on Africa in Rwanda. -Reuters