en.Wedoany.com Reported - Uganda Railways Corporation (URC) announced that the overall progress of the Tororo-Gulu meter-gauge railway restoration project, undertaken by China Road and Bridge Corporation, is steadily accelerating, but the completion time has been adjusted to October this year. This 375-kilometer-long meter-gauge railway is an important part of the Northern Corridor in East Africa. Currently, earthworks for the Gulu section have commenced, with track laying and ballast filling advancing simultaneously in multiple sections. Upon completion, it will further enhance regional railway transport capacity and cross-border logistics efficiency.
Railway infrastructure construction in East Africa is accelerating. Uganda, as a key node for regional connectivity, is currently advancing both the construction of new standard-gauge railways and the restoration of meter-gauge railways to expedite its railway modernization process. In early March, Uganda and Tanzania signed a framework agreement for a standard-gauge railway, with the line planned to connect to the Tanzanian railway network and reach the port of Dar es Salaam. In late March, Ugandan President Museveni traveled to Kisumu, Kenya, to attend the groundbreaking ceremony for the Kisumu-Malaba standard-gauge railway extension alongside Kenyan President Ruto.
While promoting standard-gauge railways, Uganda is also accelerating the restoration and utilization of its existing railway network. Museveni stated that Uganda is actively advancing the construction of multiple railway lines, including the Tororo-Gulu line, to ensure smooth freight channels extending inland from the port of Mombasa. Upon completion, these projects will strengthen freight links between Uganda and neighboring countries such as Rwanda, South Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The Tororo-Gulu meter-gauge railway had been out of service for a long time, with severely aging infrastructure. The project also faced multiple challenges during implementation, including procurement compliance issues, delayed fund disbursement, difficulties in land acquisition, insufficient budget release, and resource allocation conflicts between meter-gauge restoration and standard-gauge construction, all of which impacted the project's progress.
As a transitional measure before large-scale investment in standard-gauge railways becomes available, Uganda is progressing with other meter-gauge railway restoration projects domestically, such as the Port Bell-Kampala-Kiyengera section and the Malaba-Jinja section meter-gauge railways. Bid documents from five international contractors have now been received.
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