- A $643 million revamp of Sudan’s railway network is proposed before connecting it to neighbouring countries.
- This is expected to revive the country’s economy battered by decades of dictatorship and global isolation.
A $643 million revamp of Sudan’s railway network is proposed before connecting it to neighbouring countries. This is expected to revive the country’s economy battered by decades of dictatorship and global isolation.
According to the state-run Sudan Railways Corp, the African Development Bank, China State Construction Engineering Corp. Ltd. and some Gulf firms have evinced interest in helping to restore about 2,400 kilometres of its currently idle rail lines,. The government plans to undertake emergency repairs at a cost of $17 million of the national network that’s already in use.
Sudan is racing to salvage its economy after its former dictator Omar al-Bashir was ousted from power in 2019. After decades of US sanctions, the creaking economy is burdened with billions of dollars of foreign debt. The lifting of Sudan’s Sanctions in December 2020, enables the country to import key components. The clearing of its International Monetary Fund arrears will also unlock new financing.
The second phase of the railway project to be completed by 2024 is expected to rehabilitate abandoned lines mainly in the country’s south, restoring links to the cities of Madani, Kosti and Sennar, as well as Nyala in the war-torn western region of Darfur. To be partly financed by a $75 million World Bank grant, it will also establish a cross-border connection to Wau in South Sudan.
