Tanzania's SGR services to resume January 3rd after temporary suspension

Prof Mbarawa said the suspension was necessary to enable verification of the entire railway infrastructure, particularly in areas where safety concerns had been identified.

He cited Kidete area in Kilosa District as one of the sections that experienced minor challenges on the railway embankment, adding that engineers were finalising remedial works.

"We want to assure Tanzanians that SGR services will resume tomorrow evening as normal. It is important that we first satisfy ourselves that the infrastructure is safe for public use,” Prof Mbarawa said.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Dr Mwigulu Nchemba urged Tanzanians to disregard what he described as propaganda surrounding the SGR operations, emphasising that the service involves the safety of many passengers.

Dr Nchemba noted that even in developed countries, rail and air transport often face disruptions during periods of heavy rain or snowfall.

“Even in some major countries, train services have been suspended since Christmas due to heavy rainfall. You cannot operate a means of transport that carries people’s lives without certainty of safety,” he said.

The Prime Minister attributed much of the damage to infrastructure to environmental degradation caused by deforestation and called for urgent mitigation measures to be implemented from the village government level.

In a related development, Dr Nchemba directed the Tanzania National Roads Agency (Tanroads) to establish a camp at Godegode to assess the construction of a bridge separating the Kibakwe and Mpwapwa constituencies.

The Minister for Home Affairs, who is also Kibakwe MP, Mr George Simbachawene, said the Government’s plan to construct dams may not adequately address the problem unless accompanied by measures to control the speed of water flowing from mountainous areas.

Mr Simbachawene urged the Prime Minister to allow experts to conduct a comprehensive assessment rather than relying on existing dams, which receive large volumes of water after it has already passed through the railway line.

He added that ecological conditions have changed over time, warning that relying solely on dams would not solve the problem unless interventions begin in the highland catchment areas.