$165m to be spent on Rift Valley railway infrastructure project

5 August 2011

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has announced it will spend $40 million in order for a railway infrastructure project in East Africa to go ahead.

This financing from the AfDB forms part of $165 million being put into the Rift Valley Railways (RVR) project to manage the railway line that runs from Kenya's coastal town of Mombasa to Kampala, Uganda's capital.

Earlier today (August 5th), the organisation confirmed its financial commitment to support the RVR programme.

Ministers for the two countries said in a joint statement: "[RVR] has presented several investment plans for track maintenance, rehabilitation of locomotives and wagons."

AfDB's regional director for East Africa Gabriel Negatu also suggested the RVR could help improve the nations' economies as it may help in "bridging the infrastructure gap" in the region.

Last week, Macau Hub reported that Mozambique signed an agreement with Botswana regarding a rail transport project in order for the inland nation to receive greater access to the Indian Ocean for trade purposes.  

Category: Transport