6 days ago
Northern Corridor states pressure Kenya, Uganda to expedite railway
The Northern Corridor states have endorsed the annual plan along with a $4.5 million budget aimed at accelerating railway-related projects across the region.
The countries which mainly use the Port of Mombasa and the Northern Corridor to import or export goods emphasised the need to speed up railway connectivity as alternative to road transport due to increasing cargo volumes.
The ministers responsible for transport in Kenya, Uganda, DR Congo, Burundi, Rwanda, and South Sudan said the cost of road repairs were too high.
A recent study by the East African Business Council found that transporters pay $1.8 per kilometre on every container of cargo on the corridor, nearly twice the international average. The countries also spend about $2,160 per kilometre on road repairs every year, higher than the average estimate.
They agreed to address non-physical barriers by harmonising customs procedures, reducing paperwork, and amending their trade regulations.
Kenya and Uganda have kicked off their railway projects, with Kenya planning to continue the standard gauge railway from Naivasha in central Rift to Malaba on the border with Uganda and Kampala launching the construction of its phase from Kampala to Malaba. Once each side completes its stretch, the line will connect the Port of Mombasa to Kampala.
Benon Kajuna, Uganda Railway Corporation managing director who represented Works minister Katumba Wamala, said Kampala was pursuing a phased implementation.'The contractor (Turkish firm Yapi Merkezi) commenced work in April 2025 under limited notice to proceed with preliminary activities such as geophysical surveys, soil testing, water surveys. Feasibility studies and Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) study were updated. Sourcing external financing is ongoing and is expected to be concluded by December 2025,' he said.
Uganda is also rehabilitating its metre gauge railway from Malaba to Gulu, meant to serve the northern part of Uganda, South Sudan, and part of DRC.
Mr Chirchir said individuals affected by the project, which will run through Narok, Bomet, Nyamira, Kisumu and finally Busia counties, would be compensated.
Feasibility and ESIA studies have so far been completed, and Chirchir said Kenya intends to move the project concurrently with Uganda's.
The 475-kilometre phase 2B (Naivasha-Kisumu) and 2C (Kisumu-Malaba) is estimated to cost about $5 billion.'We are currently doing the compensation of the people on the corridor. We are basically working together in a synchronised manner. If we unlock funding today, we could be breaking ground in the next few months ahead of our colleagues, but not so much to say we are competing, we must be synced,' said Mr Chirchir.
Uganda is doing an electric SGR line between Kampala and Malaba and later towards the border with Rwanda. DR Congo has also committed to develop an SGR line, which will see a seamless rail transport from the Port of Mombasa to the hinterland, as part of a regional plan to enhance trade and movement of people.
The SGR will compliment road, ports and lake transport along the 1,700km Northern Corridor that runs from Kenya through Uganda to Rwanda, Burundi and eastern DRC.
The two Northern countries have had to move with speed, especially after Tanzania started to upgrade its Central Corridor by building an SGR line to complement the road running some 1,300 kilometres from Dar es Salaam to Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda and eastern DRC.
Dr Lam Akol Ajawin, South Sudan Minister for Transport, said there was also a need to address insecurity, noting that transportation of goods in the region has often been hampered by the poor state of roads, roadblocks and insecurity.'We are determined to create an enabling environment that supports the entire transport infrastructure of the Corridor. I urge all of us to work hand-in-hand and within our mandate to holistically mitigate safety and security issues thus enabling seamless movement of cargo and persons along the Northern Corridor,' said Dr Lam.
During the 37th meeting of the Northern Corridor Council of Ministers in Nairobi, Uganda handed over the chair to Marie Chantal Nijimbere, Minister for Trade, Transport, Industry and Tourism of Burundi. She will be in charge for the next two years.
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