Friends of the Rail Forum

Museveni, Kibaki agree to speed up rail link

New Vision (Kampala) 29 oct
By Reuben Olita
in Nairobi

Uganda and Kenya have agreed to construct a railway line linking the
port of Mombasa to Kampala, South Sudan, Rwanda, Burundi and the DR
Congo.

Construction is expected to begin next March.

During talks in Nairobi yesterday, President Yoweri Museveni and his
Kenyan counterpart, Mwai Kibaki, agreed to create a joint ministerial
commission to expedite the construction.

The two leaders were meeting at State House, Nairobi, ahead of the
two-day Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) summit which
opened in the Kenyan capital last evening.

The commission will comprise the finance and transport ministers as well
as attorney-generals of Kenya and Uganda.

The two heads of state stressed that an efficient railway line was the
most viable and affordable means of transport within the region.
Presidential Press Secretary Tamale Mirundi told The New Vision
yesterday that the leaders also agreed that Uganda builds a depot at
Mombasa to speed up the transportation of goods to and from the sea
port.

The Kenyan government will avail land for the depot’s construction. In
return, Tamale said, Uganda will give Kenya land currently occupied by
the army in Kitante, Kampala.

A joint communique issued after the talks said Museveni and Kibaki also
discussed other areas of development, including energy and information
technology, which they said were vital in accelerating growth..
The two leaders reaffirmed their commitment to the East African
Community integration process and the agreement signed by the three
trading blocs of EAC, COMESA and SADC on October 22 during a summit in
Kampala.

Now maybe watch the politics here get interesting - especially in relation to the Central Region. Why? My guess - all the trucking companies...........................!

A source in one of the two governments tells me that the politics is not only domestic. There are rumours that funding has already been offered by a Middle Eastern country to build the completely new transport corridor, but that the International Monetary Fund is worried that it will lose influence and has hinted at retaliation if such funding sources are used. Whither the so-called "free market"?!

This will be entertaining!

From Railways Africa (here and here respectively):

KENYA & UGANDA AGREE ON STD GAUGE
Friday, 31 October 2008

At a meeting at state house n Nairobi on 27 October, Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki and his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni agreed to create a joint ministerial commission with a mandate to expedite the construction of a standard gauge rail network starting at Mombasa and extending through Kenya and Uganda to the Sudan, DRC, Rwanda and Burundi. The commission will comprise the finance and transport ministers as well as attorney-generals of Kenya and Uganda.

The ineffective and inadequate existing system is largely blamed for “economic stagnation”, with commerce in the region unable to compete with countries possessing more efficient railways or – in the case of Rwanda and Burundi – no railways at all.

RAILS FROM UGANDA TO EVERYWHERE
Friday, 31 October 2008

At their 27 October meeting in Nairobi, Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki and his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni agreed to speed the construction of rail extensions from Uganda to Southern Sudan as well as Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The finance ministers of both countries have been included in a commission created to further these objectives.

All the new lines are to be on 1,435mm gauge, and the existing metre-gauge lines in Kenya and Uganda are to be reconstructed to conform. No mention of likely cost nor the sourcing of finance needed to fund the project were mentioned in the communique issued after the meeting.

Another case of "Standard Gauge-itis", doubtless promoted by unscrupulous and uncaring, but turnover and profit-seeking international railway supply companies who do not understand nor care about the real problem, which is certainly not the metre gauge in use in those countries!

Steve, I wouldn't be automatically as negative as you about Standard Stephenson Gauge for Africa, at least not before seeing the detailed arguments on which each case is based.

South Africa is perhaps a special case. With the Gautrain, Standard Gauge is clearly not necessary for a "fast" train which is not going to go any faster than 160 kph, relatively sedate by most international standards. And both Australia and South Africa have demonstrated that long and heavy freight trains can run on Cape Gauge. South African has a vast and complex rail system and the introduction of a new gauge doesn't seem to make sense.

But most African countries only have one major single line from a port to the capital city, sometimes on to a border with a neighbouring country, with a handful of little-used branch lines. As far as I know Cairo is the only city outside South Africa with a well-developed metro suburban system. Most of these rail networks are in an extremely dilapidated state and need major investment. Thus, if new capital is available to virtually rebuild what is basically a small and simple network, the option of rebuilding it to Standard Gauge may be worth looking at.

In addition, it's worth remembering that African railways were not built to serve the needs of a 21st century economy. They were built to serve the needs of a colonial power in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. They are often in the wrong place. At least one of the routes being considered for the new Kenya-Uganda-Sudan communications corridor (which in the grander plans includes road, rail, pipeline and fibre optic cable) starts at a completely new port and goes nowhere near any existing rail infrastructure.

Gauge change at borders is a potential problem, but it's a problem that already exists. Even if Uganda, Kenya and Sudan's existing railways were extended to meet up, there would still be a disconnect as the first two are Metre Gauge and the latter is 3' 6". But in this particular case it's a regional agreement and the new line and new gauge would penetrate all three countries.

The standard guage idea, as you say John, may not be that much of a mission. That is a really good point you made.

Cape to Cairo anyone?