Uganda’s Works Minister Eng. Monica Azuba and High Commissioner to Kenya Angelina Wapakhabulo have had a feel of what 40 million Ugandans are eagerly waiting for.
The two ladies on Wednesday took a ride on Kenya’s new Standard Gauge Railway train.
Mr. Don Wanyama, President Yoweri Museveni’s Senior Press Secretary said this is a familiarisation tour as Uganda gets ready to undertake its part of the project.
Yesterday, Nairobi launched the 500km first part of the Standard Gauge Railway that will run from Nairobi to East Africa’s biggest port- Mombasa. The second stretch the Uganda Railway from Nairobi to the Ugandan border is yet to be built.
According to the Northern Corridor Infrastructure Projects protocol, the SGR is expected to link at least four countries of Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda and South Sudan.
The completion of a route length of 472kms means that the railway still has to snake through rift-valley all the way to Malaba before it can link to Kampala.
Of the planned 1,724 kilometres of SGR, Uganda will start by constructing the 273km stretch from Malaba in eastern Uganda to Kampala in central Uganda.
The estimated cost for the entire 1,724km SGR network in Uganda is $12.8 billion.
The sources of funding for the SGR are the same – China’s Exim Bank. In December 2016, Uganda and Kenya signed a bilateral agreement in which points to synchronisation of both projects.
A team from Exim Bank is expected in the country in June 2017 to carry out project appraisal on the route, the fiscal regime, the state of the economy and repayment plan.
Big strides
Meanwhile, it has been a busy week for Eng Kasingye Kyamugambi, the SGR coordinator here as Uganda continues carrying out compensation on land for people that may be affected by the project from Tororo to Kampala.
Eng. Kyamugambi on Monday led an SGR Uganda team to meet with affected persons for a sensitization meeting in Mayuge.
SGR Uganda communications officer David Mihigo told TheUgandan that valuation of all affected persons in Mayuge was completed.
The residents applauded the team for the transparency exhibited during the process of assessment of their property.
Author: stephenmuneza@gmail.com, +256772544870 or Twitter @stephenkmuneza
