SGR expansion plans to include 12 key logistics hubs

The Kenya Railways Corporation (KRC) has announced plans to establish 12 commercial and logistics hubs along the Mombasa-Malaba Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) line.

The move is aimed at boosting trade and enhancing transportation efficiency between Kenya and Uganda.

KRC stated that the hubs will be developed as part of the Naivasha-Kisumu-Malaba SGR expansion, known as Phase 2B and 2C.

“Kenya Railways intends to introduce commercial and logistic hubs in both the metre gauge railway and standard gauge railway," KRC said.

"The approach is during the development of SGR Phase 2B and Phase 2C; adequate land will be acquired as part of the project at the identified locations and have the private sector participate in the development of the commercial and or logistics hub,” KRC said.

The hubs will be located in Narok, Bomet, Sotik or Kericho, Nyamira, Kisumu, Luanda or Vihiga, and Kakamega or Mumias. Additional hubs are planned for Busia or Malaba, Voi, Konza, Athi River, and Naivasha.

These facilities are expected to support cargo movement between Kenya and landlocked countries such as Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and South Sudan.

The planned Naivasha-Kisumu-Malaba SGR section spans 369.3 kilometers and is a crucial component of Kenya’s railway network expansion.

KRC stressed the importance of completing Kenya’s portion of the railway to align with Uganda’s ongoing SGR construction. “

"With the Ugandans constructing the SGR in their country, there is a need to implement the project on our end for seamless connectivity to the hinterland and avoid shift of the transport and trade route from the Northern Corridor to the Central Corridor,” KRC noted.

Phase 2B involves constructing a 255-kilometre railway from Narok to Kisumu, with improvements at Kisumu Port, including an eight-kilometre branch line and two multi-purpose berths.

KRC pointed out that Kisumu Port has recorded increased activity, with a Kenya Ports Authority report showing that 90 vessels docked there in 2022, twice the number recorded in 2018.

The final phase, Phase 3, will extend the railway from Malaba to Kampala, Uganda, and further to Kigali, Rwanda.

Feasibility studies and preliminary designs are currently underway as Kenya and Uganda advance efforts to link their railway systems.