Uganda Railways Corporation : Staying on Track
Despite facing challenges brought about by natural disaster and COVID-19, Uganda Railways Corporation continues to drive improvements to critical infrastructure that will open up opportunities and deliver growth.
Uganda Railways Corporation
Reviving Railways Uganda Railways Corporation is relaunching passenger and freight routes in a bid to revitalise a once forgotten form of transport Writer: Tom Wadlow | Project Manager: Josh Mann Trains are starting to bounce back in Uganda. Playing second fiddle to heavily favoured highways over the course of 20-plus years, the country’s rail network is embarking on a revitalisation journey having previously received just two percent of transport funding. And there is abundant opportunity to make a quick impact. Uganda’s total developed rail network covers 1,250 kilometres, but only 265 kilometres are currently serviceable due to abandonment or closure. Uganda Railways Corporation (URC) is in charge of the ambitious revamping exercise, the Corporation currently home to 14 locomotives, 1,317 freight wagons and 15 passenger coaches. For Managing Director Charles Kateeba, it is an opportunity to fast-track development of an industry he has long held a passion for. “It all started from my love of manufacturing and engineering,” he recalls. “When I was doing my degree at the Zaporozhye Machine Building Institute in Ukraine, I discovered that Uganda had contracted a German company to set up a modern central railway workshop. “I thought it would give me an opportunity to apply my knowledge and skills in the process of railway maintenance, including general overhauls and rebuilds, upgrades and possible new equipment assembly or manufacture. “Therefore, on completion of my course, I applied for a job and I was taken on as a Trainee Production Engineer in 1984. I grew through the ranks to become Managing Director in 2013.” …
