Works on SGR start 2024, says govt
SGR Uganda project coordinator Perez Wamburu speaks to journalists on March 1, 2024. PHOTO/ ABUBAKER KIRUNDA
What you need to know:
- At least 5,000 people are due for compensation under SGR arrangements and so far, over 1,500, mainly from the Eastern corridor, are in the final stages of being fully compensated.
Construction of the long-awaited Uganda Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) is set to commence before the end of this year, the project coordinator has said.
Perez Wamburu announced that compensation arrangements for people affected by the project have been finalised to pave the way for commencement of works.
“From Malaba border to Mayuge District in Busoga sub-region, over 90 percent of the residents displaced by the SGR project have been compensated,” Wamburu told Monitor.
He added: “We are now in Jinja where we have finished disclosing to victims what they are supposed to get before being paid soon.”
The development comes eight years after the project was launched in three East African Community (EAC) partner states Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania, through which the project will run to reduce high costs of transport associated with delays of goods in transit.
According to Wamburu, internal family fights over sharing compensation money prompted the government to hold the restitution until the aggrieved parties come to an agreement.
Wamburu further revealed that the process of securing a construction and supervising contractors is ongoing, adding that a consultant for the environmental impact assessment is also jointly being sought, together with the contractor, to avoid any delays.
At least 5,000 people are due for compensation under SGR arrangements and so far, over 1,500, mainly from the Eastern corridor, are in the final stages of being fully compensated, according to Wamburu.
Asuman Isabirye, one of the project affected persons (PAPs), who resides in Bugembe (Jinja City), said his undisclosed compensation was “enough for him to remain with disposable money for business once credited on his account.”
The chairperson of Jinja PAPs, Julius Kayira, described the compensation exercise as “transparent” and encouraged the PAPs to peacefully vacate upon receiving payment, instead of waiting for forceful evictions.
However, he appealed to government to maintain the 3-month grace period for people being displaced after receiving compensation so that they can easily settle in decent places.
