The East African nation revives long-delayed Standard Gauge Railway plan, turns to global lenders after failed China financing push, with talks under way with World Bank to unlock funding
Uganda has appointed Citibank to help raise $3.19 billion for its planned Standard Gauge Railway project, the government said on Thursday, as it seeks to revive a long-delayed infrastructure plan.
In a post on X, Uganda’s finance ministry said the government is “in talks with the World Bank to support the project.”
Earlier this month, the Washington-based lender confirmed that it was considering “an array of potential financing options” for the railway, which is seen as critical to improving regional trade links.
A Ugandan delegation in Washington for the Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank met officials from Citibank led by Richard Hodder, the bank’s managing director and global head of export and agency finance, “to discuss progress made in mobilising the required financing for the SGR project,” the ministry said.
The railway, a 272-kilometer line linking Kampala to Malaba on the Kenyan border, is intended to connect landlocked Uganda to Kenya’s rail network and onward to the Indian Ocean port of Mombasa, easing the movement of goods and lowering transport costs.
Uganda has struggled for years to secure financing for the project. After unsuccessful attempts to obtain funding from Beijing, the government in 2024 awarded construction to the Turkish firm Yapi Merkezi.
Preliminary work has begun with limited government funding, but full construction has yet to start, pending the mobilization of external financing.
Faustine Ngila is the AI Editor at Impact Newswire, based in Nairobi, Kenya. He is an award-winning journalist specializing in artificial intelligence, blockchain, and emerging technologies.
He previously worked as a global technology reporter at Quartz in New York and Digital Frontier in London, where he covered innovation, startups, and the global digital economy.
With years of experience reporting on cutting-edge technologies, Faustine focuses on AI developments, industry trends, and the impact of technology on society.
Malick Sidibé (Mali)
Most Famous Photo: “Nuit de Noël (Happy Club)” (1963) or his vibrant series documenting youth culture and parties in Bamako.
Short Bio: Also from Bamako, Mali, Malick Sidibé (1936-2016) rose to prominence for his candid black-and-white photographs of the city’s lively youth culture in the 1960s and 70s. Known as the “eye of Bamako,” he captured the energy of parties, dance clubs, and everyday life, his images embodying a sense of freedom and cultural awakening in post-colonial Mali.
Lucky Brandy
Chad: You have two cows. They will probably outlive you.
snow pharaoh
A baby was born in South Africa. The village was very poor, and the makeshift hospital didn\’t have some necessary equipment.. such as scales.
The father however, was desperate to know the newborn baby\’s weight. After quite a bit of asking around, the hospital\’s chairman came up with an idea.
\”Five miles west, there\’s a butcher shop. The owner deals with meat, he should have a rather precise scale. You could just put your baby on the meat scale, and the weight reading you\’ll get should be pretty accurate.\”
And so the father departed westward. After much walking, with his newborn child cardled safely in his arms, he finally arrived at the butcher shop. He explained his dilemma to the shop owner, to witch the latter replied:
\”Don\’t worry, friend. It\’s not even a problem, I\’ll check it for you, free of charge.\” And so he took the child to the back, where the scale was located.
The father heard rumbling noises, and some scraping.. About a minute later the butcher came back.
\”About three pounds boneless\” He said.