Central Corridor ministers commit to reduce delays
The Fund is expected to eliminate some of transport hurdles that have been causing delays, Dorothy Nakaweesi writes.
Transport ministers of the Central Corridor have signed a $30 million (Shs108 billion) external fund which is expected to eliminate some of transport hurdles that have been causing delays.
The Central Corridor route connects the Port of Dar-es-Salaam by road, rail and inland waterways to Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda and the Eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo and all of central and northern western Tanzania.
This route forms part of the backbone of the regional transportation system in East and Eastern Central Africa carrying the import and export of five countries with a population of more than 120 million people.
Uganda’s transport minister, Ms Monica Azuba Ntege, speaking at the signing ceremony of a joint commitment at their 8th Interstate Ministerial meeting held in Kampala last week, said: “The economic success of all member countries and the subsequent well-fare of the people will depend on how well leaders will address the issues of infrastructure development in the Central Corridor.”
Improvement
She said this corridor should emphasise improvement in infrastructure facilities which include ports, water ways, railway services, air services, roads, energy and communication.
“This Corridor is a critical route for Uganda’s international trade because it gives access route to the sea for our exporters and importers. Once all these commitments are fulfilled there will be a reduction in the cost of doing business along this route,” She noted.
Ugandan traders have complained for years for mistreatment at the port of Mombasa and suffered delays.
Dar port declined in its management years back but authorities at the port are saying all these issues have been sorted and Ugandan traders are free transit their goods in and out of this port.
Engineer Deusdedit Kakoko, the director general of the Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA), said: “What we were lacking were the transport systems and this is being addressed to reduce the delays along the route.”
