Uganda-Kenya have today agreed on SGR financing and construction timeline.
The two countries have agreed to a synchronized construction of the railway line from Naivasha to Kampala within 42 months.
This means that once the train leaves Mombasa, it will connect to Malaba and onward to Kampala seamlessly preventing any downtime or delay along the route.
Thus development of the route from Naivasha-Kisumu-Malaba and from Malaba to Kampala that is set to commence will be done simultaneously.
The agreement was signed by Uganda’s Minister Of Finance Matia Kasaija and Minister of Works Monica Azuba. Kenya was represented by Henry Rotich, the Cabinet Secretary for National Treasury and the Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development James Macharia.
Henceforth the cabinet ministers responsible for finance and transport will jointly visit the EXIM Bank of China later this month to discuss the financing modalities.
This agreement follows a bilateral agreement signed in November spelling out how the two states will exchange locomotives at the Malaba border. It also provides for seamless transition by the diesel traction system operated by Kenya to the Ugandan electric system. However, Kenya has a provision to upgrade to electric traction.
