China to build new East Africa railway line

[cirr]

12 May 2014 Last updated at 00:26

China to build new East Africa railway line

Regional leaders and visiting Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang attended the signing ceremony

Formal agreements for plans to build a new railway line in East Africa with Chinese help have been signed in the Kenyan capital Nairobi.

It is to run from Mombasa to Nairobi and will extend eventually via Uganda to Rwanda and South Sudan.

In Kenya, the line is to replace a narrow-gauge track built more than 100 years ago during British colonial rule.

China is to finance 90% of the cost of the first stage, put at $3.8bn, with work carried out by a Chinese firm.

Construction work on the standard gauge line is expected to start in October this year, and the 610 km (380-mile) stretch from the coast to Nairobi is due to be finished in early 2018.

"The costs of moving our people and our goods... across our borders will fall sharply," Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta told a news conference after the signing.

Mr Kenyatta has previously said the new link should cut the cost of sending a tonne of freight one kilometre from 20 US cents to eight, Reuters news agency reported.


“The costs of moving our people and our goods across our borders will fall sharply”

Uhuru Kenyatta Kenyan President


"This project demonstrates that there is equal co-operation and mutual benefit between China and the East African countries, and the railway is a very important part of transport infrastructure development," said Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang.

A subsidiary of China Communications Construction Co has been named as the main contractor.

According to the terms of the agreement, China's Eximbank is to provide 90% of the cost of the first phase of the line, with Kenya putting up the remaining 10%.

After that stage is complete, it is planned that work on the links to other countries in the region will start.

Construction of the original line began in Mombasa 1895 and the railway reached Nairobi in 1899.

It reached the shore of Lake Victoria in December 1901.

During the difficult and often dangerous work, at least 2,000 workers lost their lives - many of them Indian labourers imported to East Africa to build the railway.

Malaria, dysentery and other diseases took their toll as well as accidents and wild animals.

BBC News - China to build new East Africa railway line

 

[Raphael]

Infrastructure must always be the first step for development. Africa has a promising future if these deals can continue.

 

[al-Hasani]

Infrastructure must always be the first step for development. Africa has a promising future if these deals can continue.

Looking at that map of the railway it would not be a too far-fetched thought to think that such a railway line or in general infrastructure could be connected not only with the Arab states in North Africa but essentially the Arabian Peninsula itself and thus the ME and from there the remaining Asia and nearby Europe.

East Africa is a booming region indeed if we look past Somalia. And largely secure too.
Don't forget that Africa will have a huge population in the near future and it's an extremely rich continent in terms of resources. Enough to support all those people. If peace prevails the continent is bound to grow on all fronts.

The Arab League has on many occasions stated the need to work closer with Africa as a continent. Obviously the non-Arab Africa. The GCC in particular have a lot of investments in Africa.

 

[Raphael]

Looking at that map of the railway it would not be a too far-fetched thought to think that such a railway line or in general infrastructure could be connected not only with the Arab states in North Africa but essentially the Arabian Peninsula itself and thus the ME and from there the remaining Asia and nearby Europe.

East Africa is a booming region indeed if we look past Somalia. And largely secure too.
Don't forget that Africa will have a huge population in the near future and it's an extremely rich continent in terms of resources. Enough to support all those people. If peace prevails the continent is bound to grow on all fronts.

The Arab League has on many occasions stated the need to work closer with Africa as a continent. Obviously the non-Arab Africa. The GCC in particular have a lot of investments in Africa.

This is a very interesting proposition. I could imagine a undersea railway connecting Djibouti and Yemen (in effect Africa and Arabia), although both countries would need serious improvements in their internal security before investors have the confidence to put any money down. East Africa is indeed booming. I think it's easily the most promising part of Africa, because it's stable by African standards (think Kenya), and it has by far the best strategic location, being located close to the Middle East, and is also the closest place in Africa to emerging Asian markets.

 

[al-Hasani]

This is a very interesting proposition. I could imagine a undersea railway connecting Djibouti and Yemen (in effect Africa and Arabia), although both countries would need serious improvements in their internal security before investors have the confidence to put any money down. East Africa is indeed booming. I think it's easily the most promising part of Africa, because it's stable by African standards (think Kenya), and it has by far the best strategic location, being located close to the Middle East, and is also the closest place in Africa to emerging Asian markets.

Actually there has been talk about connecting Djibouti (mainland Africa) and Yemen and thus the Arabian Peninsula and the ME for years now. A bridge was even proposed.

Bridge of the Horns - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It was supposed to be financed by GCC states.

This is the same crossing that the earliest humans that ventured out of Africa and into the Arabian Peninsula and from there the remaining world took.

Similarly there has been talk of connecting Egypt (Africa) with KSA (ME) as well.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saudi–Egypt_Causeway

Yes, ironically that region of Africa was also the region that had the closest connections to the Arab world/ME and even the Indian Subcontinent and from there the remaining parts of Asia than any other Sub-Saharan region of Africa.

There is a lot of potential for creating new trade routes in that region of the world. It would be good for the trade and for all parties involved.

It's all about security though and stability as you say.

 

[al-Hasani]

@Chinese-Dragon @ChineseTiger1986 @Wholegrain @Hu Songshan

Your opinions please.