Geza Ulole
JF-Expert Member
- Oct 31, 2009
- 65,136
- 91,917
Kenya's first new railway in 100 years a mixed blessing
News | 3 July 2017, 5:00pm
Fran Blandy
More than a century after a colonial railway gave birth to modern Kenya, the country is betting on a new Chinese-built route to cement its position as the gateway to East Africa.
The $3.2 billion railway linking Nairobi with the port city of Mombasa is taking its first passengers on the 472 km journey, allowing them to skip a hair-raising drive on one of Kenya’s most dangerous highways.
LINK: A section of the Mombasa to Nairobi railway. Picture: EPA
The railway is the country’s biggest infrastructure project since independence and while it has courted controversy, it is a key selling point for the ruling Jubilee party before the August elections.
It is also part of a “master plan” by East African leaders to connect their nations by rail, with the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) planned to eventually link Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan, Burundi and Ethiopia.
“There is no country which has ever developed without having a very robust railway system. It was long overdue,” Kenya’s Transport Minister James Macharia said.
He said not upgrading the railway in more than 100 years “has dragged us backwards in terms of development”.
It was on May 30, 1896, that colonial Britain began building a railway from what is today Kenya’s coast to improve access to the riches of Uganda, showing little interest in the wild land in between.
The railway, steeped in tales of swashbuckling colonial adventure and beloved by tourists up until its last, creaking journey in April, is credited with shaping Kenya into its current form.
The capital, Nairobi, today a regional hub, was a swampy outpost with no particular attraction until it became the headquarters of Kenya Railways.
The construction of the railway is the stuff of legend, with British and Indian workers terrorised by a pair of lions said to have devoured about 135 men.
The train was later dubbed the “Lunatic Express”.
Some see a touch of folly in its successor too. In as much as the old line traced the development of colonial Kenya, the new railway has proven a mirror for modern Kenya - dogged by corruption accusations, battling environmental concerns, while trying to position itself as the gateway to east Africa.
The World Bank, and others, warned that building a new railway, instead of refurbishing the old one, was the most expensive option.
However, the government went ahead with the project, skipping an open tender to make a direct deal with China - whose Export-Import Bank has loaned Kenya 90% of the venture’s cost.
“We should ask: ‘Why did you negotiate this badly’?” said Kwame Owino, head of the Nairobi-based Institute of Economic Affairs.
He said the government, whose debt has doubled in three years, would be forced to raise taxes to cover the bill.
“My feeling as an economist is that it is going to be a white elephant but, as a taxpayer, I hope not,” said Owino. - AFP
Kenya's first new railway in 100 years a mixed blessing | African Independent
News | 3 July 2017, 5:00pm
Fran Blandy
More than a century after a colonial railway gave birth to modern Kenya, the country is betting on a new Chinese-built route to cement its position as the gateway to East Africa.
The $3.2 billion railway linking Nairobi with the port city of Mombasa is taking its first passengers on the 472 km journey, allowing them to skip a hair-raising drive on one of Kenya’s most dangerous highways.
LINK: A section of the Mombasa to Nairobi railway. Picture: EPA
The railway is the country’s biggest infrastructure project since independence and while it has courted controversy, it is a key selling point for the ruling Jubilee party before the August elections.
It is also part of a “master plan” by East African leaders to connect their nations by rail, with the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) planned to eventually link Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan, Burundi and Ethiopia.
“There is no country which has ever developed without having a very robust railway system. It was long overdue,” Kenya’s Transport Minister James Macharia said.
He said not upgrading the railway in more than 100 years “has dragged us backwards in terms of development”.
It was on May 30, 1896, that colonial Britain began building a railway from what is today Kenya’s coast to improve access to the riches of Uganda, showing little interest in the wild land in between.
The railway, steeped in tales of swashbuckling colonial adventure and beloved by tourists up until its last, creaking journey in April, is credited with shaping Kenya into its current form.
The capital, Nairobi, today a regional hub, was a swampy outpost with no particular attraction until it became the headquarters of Kenya Railways.
The construction of the railway is the stuff of legend, with British and Indian workers terrorised by a pair of lions said to have devoured about 135 men.
The train was later dubbed the “Lunatic Express”.
Some see a touch of folly in its successor too. In as much as the old line traced the development of colonial Kenya, the new railway has proven a mirror for modern Kenya - dogged by corruption accusations, battling environmental concerns, while trying to position itself as the gateway to east Africa.
The World Bank, and others, warned that building a new railway, instead of refurbishing the old one, was the most expensive option.
However, the government went ahead with the project, skipping an open tender to make a direct deal with China - whose Export-Import Bank has loaned Kenya 90% of the venture’s cost.
“We should ask: ‘Why did you negotiate this badly’?” said Kwame Owino, head of the Nairobi-based Institute of Economic Affairs.
He said the government, whose debt has doubled in three years, would be forced to raise taxes to cover the bill.
“My feeling as an economist is that it is going to be a white elephant but, as a taxpayer, I hope not,” said Owino. - AFP
Kenya's first new railway in 100 years a mixed blessing | African Independent
