Three East African countries are contemplating investing in a superhighway as part of efforts to boost trade and deepen integration.
The governments of Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda say they are looking into the construction of a six-lane superhighway from Mombasa to Kampala and onwards to Kigali. The Presidents of the three countries, which have formed a “caucus of the willing” that is alienating Tanzania from East Africa Community (EAC) joint projects, met recently in Rwanda for the third Infrastructure Summit, where they discussed the proposed super highway.
SummitsAt the inaugural tripartite summit held in Uganda in June this year, the leaders agreed to cooperate in various infrastructure projects, such as standard-gauge railways, oil pipelines, refineries and ports. The second summit, held in Kenya, saw the leaders participate in the commissioning of a new berth at Mombasa that will increase the port’s capacity so that it is capable of serving the entire region.
Construction of the superhighway, which will run parallel to the 3 000 km, $13.4-billion standard-gauge railway line, whose construc-tion is slated to start before the end of this year, is seen as being critical for regional development.
In the absence of a functional railway network, the three countries depend on the Northern Corridor single-carriage road, which is deemed to be too narrow and inadequate for transporting about 90% of goods entering or leaving the region.
The superhighway project is inspired by the N1 highway that connects Cape Town, in South Afric,a to Harare, in Zimbabwe. The N1 forms the first section of the famed Cape-to-Cairo superhighway.
Regional trade lobby group TradeMark East Africa is already undertaking a feasibility study for the superhighway, whose construction is expected to start in 2016.
“The proposed road is intended to ease the movement of cargo, thereby reducing the cost of doing business and increasing intraregional trade,” says TradeMark East Africa Uganda country director Allen Asiimwe.