Construction of Uganda’s Standard Gauge Railway set to commence signaling giant leap towards pan critical infrastructure and economic future. The above announcement was done today Wednesday 31st July 2013 by Dr Chris Baryomunsi the Minister of ICT and National Guidance while briefing the press.
Project overview
This project is a multi country project under the Northern Corridor Infrastructure Projects(NCIP) and seeks to link Uganda to Kenya as well as other neighboring countries such as Rwanda, South Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
It is important to note that the SGR project has been plagued by one challenge or another from the onset. It was shocking to learn of the problems facing initial plans due to funding issues and previous contractors complications. First, Uganda was supposed to establish the agreement with China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd (CHEC) in 2015. However, it broke down in the middle of securing a funding deal from China and ultimately the contract was called off, forcing Uganda to look for new financiers. The management of the project has however been taken over Yapi Merkezi – a Turkish construction firm which has worked in other African countries including Tanzania. The shift to Turkish involvement is not new because Uganda like many countries in the region is diversifying its partners in his foreign relations.
Now that the Ugandan government has obtained the necessary funding, it is in the final stages of signing the relevant contracts for the project, and has also begun sourcing for other forms of funding for the project with construction expected to commence this year.
Significance
The line will cover a distance of 273kilometres and begin at the southern end at the town of Malaba at the border with Kenya, and ends at Kampala. This will be a critical transport route since it will intersect with Kenya’s own SGR line thus making the transport of goods far much easier and cheaper. It has been anticipated that the project of construction of the railway would lead to reduction in cost of transportation and the time taken to transport goods, and would offer a chance that would revolutionize the Uganda economy through improving the trade and FDI.
Challenges
However, there are still issues to be solved with this perspective. The Ugandan government is still in the process of coming up with ways of paying those affected by the project something they have proved difficult to meet. Where compensation has been an issue there has been a continuous struggle to acquire the land and right of way including areas such as Jinja.
The Uganda’s Standard Gauge Railway project is part and parcel of it’s Vision 2040, the ambition that envisages a change in economic structure with improvement in infrastructure amongst other things.
The new railway will help to ease the pressure on the country’s aged metre-gauge railway that seem to lack the capacity to meet demand for modern transport. Given that the SGR is faster and more reliable than many existing infrastructure, it is well positioned to contribute positively towards the realization of Uganda’s status of a middle income country.
