Tanzania government says has secured funding for SGR section to Burundi

Currently, the section between Dar es Salaam and Dodoma, through Morogoro, is already operational with the rest of the other lots still under construction.

TRC acting director general, Mateshi Tito, said on Thursday November 15 that the government had concluded discussions with three international financial institutions that will finance the section from Uvinza in Kigoma (Tanzania) to Musongati in Burundi.

“The aforementioned lot will be facilitated by the Africa Development Bank (AfDB). Very soon we are going to sign the contract to enable the construction of the section to begin,” he said.

However, Mr Tito did not reveal the exact amount the three institutions will provide for the construction of the modern, electric railway in the particular section.

Mr Tito was speaking on the sidelines of a training session that involved the parliamentary Public Investment Committee (PIC) members.

Commenting on the other sections, Mr Tito stressed that the progress for the construction of all the lots was going on well. 

The completion of the Makutupora-Tabora lot was estimated at 14.53 percent by October while the Tabora-Isaka lot was at 6.14 percent.

The construction of the Isaka-Mwanza section has reached 60.62 percent, while the Tabora-Kigoma section is at 6.68 percent.

Mr Tito also said that discussions were going on between the government and companies that have shown interest in investing in the SGR.

Some local and foreign investors have shown interest in procuring the SGR locomotives, while others are keen to construct the Mtwara-Mbamba Bay SGR project, according to him.

The PIC chairman, Mr Augustine Vuma Holle, said that members were pleased to hear about the amount that has been spent on the construction of the SGR so far, whereby a total of $10 billion has already been used.

“We are optimistic that once the freight train services commence next February, the income collected from services will increase threefold. We have just seen the TRC report that since SGR passengers started its operations, the corporation has already collected over Sh20 billion,” said Mr Holle, who is also the MP for Kasulu Rural constituency.

“This is a significant amount. We expect to collect even more revenue once freight transportation begins. As you know, our railway is a dual-use railway. Often, revenue generated from passenger train services is typically low at 20 percent, while 80 percent usually comes from freight transportation,” he noted.

Deputy Minister for Transport, Mr David Kihenzile, expressed satisfaction with the positive feedback received from members of the Public Investment Committee.

“It is true the investment for the SGR project is huge and the government will implement this project diligently,” he said.