The Civil Engineering Contractor September 2018 | Page 11

INFRASTRUCTURE AFRICA
SOUTHERN AFRICA
BOTSWANA
Construction of railway lines
linking
Mosetse–Kazungula
and Mmamabula–Lephalale in
Botswana is under consideration.
They would link Botswana’s rail
network with that of Zambia’s
to create a direct north–south
corridor through Botswana to
South Africa and would cost an
estimated USD1.2-billion. The
government of Botswana has said
it is committed to infrastructure
development in key sectors of
the economy and to offering
opportunities for investment
across the spectrum. Botswana
is expected to ramp up the
production of coal through coal-
fired plants in the near future
and to attain full independence
with respect to generation of
electricity by the year 2020. The
refurbishment of Morupule A and
the advent of independent power
producers (IPPs) — representing
private investment — will boost
thermal power production.
Shumba Energy is in the
process of finalising the power
producer agreement ahead of
construction on the Sechaba Coal
power plant, set to commence
by 2018/19. The introduction of
IPPs in Botswana is a significant
milestone and stands to boost
future generation potential. It
gives the government a window
of opportunity to divert scarce
resources towards investment in
other sectors, while at the same
time bringing in expertise and
efficiency in the private sector.
Botswana infra
upgrades
Uganda looks for a fast, efficient, and reliable mode of rail transport.
EAST AFRICA
UGANDA
Uganda’s Kisumu–Malaba rail link go-ahead
Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni has agreed to the final financial
deal for the Kisumu–Malaba–Kampala section of the Standard Gauge
Railway (SGR). Uganda had for more than two years delayed the signing
of the financing agreement for the SGR, but Museveni announced that
the country will now sign the final financing agreement by September
this year. This came following a meeting with Kenyan president Uhuru
Kenyatta and Chinese financiers.
This comes in the context of a grand plan to connect the East African
region through railway networks, one of which is the SGR. Meanwhile,
Kenya has already begun laying tracks for the USD1.5-billion phase of
the SGR line between Nairobi and Naivasha in anticipation of Uganda
securing joint funding for the Kisumu–Malaba stretch.
Museveni had asked for a joint mission with Kenya to Beijing to meet
China’s Export and Import (EXIM) Bank officials to expedite the financial
closure of the two countries’ multibillion-dollar projects. On the Kenyan
section of the railway, in excess of one million passengers used the SGR
line in just one year, and more than 800 000 tonnes of cargo has been
transported since the cargo segment of the railway was inaugurated in
January this year.
The plan is that once the railway line to Malaba is finalised, trade
between Uganda and Kenya is bound to increase, thereby growing gross
domestic product by at least 1.5%, while drastically reducing the number
of heavy trucks on the roads of both countries, thereby reducing road
wear and tear. A fast, efficient, and reliable mode of transportation is
anticipated from Naivasha–Kisumu–Malaba SGR, along with many other
benefits from the construction project.
CEC September 2018 - 9