Billed as the most ambitious project in Kenya since it gained independence in 1963, the first section of the East-African nation’s $13 billion railway is to launch on 31 May.
The $13.8bn rail project, which began December 2014, is part of a package of deals signed between Kenya and China in 2013.
On 28th August, 2013 Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda governments signed a Tripartite Agreement committing to fast track the development of the railway to their respective capital cities. South Sudan has since come on board as an interested stakeholder in the project.
China had in August 2013 promised Nairobi Sh425 billion ($4.9 billion), part of which Sh319 billion will be used for constructing the Mombasa-Nairobi section of the SGR project as well as buying wagons and locomotives.
The railway is being built by the state-owned China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC), 90% of the ongoing development of the Mombasa-Nairobi section is being financed by The Export-Import Bank of China.
The initial section of the railway will connect the seaside section of the city of Mombasa to Nairobi.
The first phase of the project is estimated to cost Ksh 327 billion ($3.8). China Exim Bank is financing the project after Kenya and China signed a financial agreement on 11th May, 2014.
The Exim Bank share of funding is 90 per cent, while the government of Kenya contribution is 10 per cent.
It is hoped that the track will shorten the journey between the two cities from 12 hours to four hours.
Passenger trains will travel at 120km/h, and freight trains will be able to carry 25 million tonnes per year.
The hope is that this new railway will reduce congestion on Kenya’s crowded road network, and promote tourism.
The first phase is part of a much wider project by the East Africa Railway Master-plan which will link Mombasa with other major east African cities such as Kampala, in Uganda, and Juba, in South Sudan
The SGR is a flagship project under the Kenya Vision 2030 development agenda. It will simplify transport operations across the borders and reduce travel costs, apart from benefiting the economies of Kenya and the neighbouring countries.
According to Deloitte, more than $131 billion was spent on transportation construction on the continent in 2015; by 2025, $200 billion is expected to be spent on the continent’s roads, and another $7 billion dollars on African airports.
