27
Oct
NAIROBI, Kenya -It could be another false start for the much anticipated construction of the $3.8 billion Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) after the High Court ordered the Chinese contractor to halt .
This is until another case linked to the contract is heard and determined.
The latest hurdle involves locals staying along the track that the multi-billion, state of the art rail is expected to pass.
Local residents have vowed not to give up land for the construction until fully compensated by the government in a tussle that could further complicate the realization of the dream railway line.
The SGR project, that will initially connect Mombasa to Nairobi covering a distance of 406 kilometres, has been dogged by challenges with serious questions posed on the way the tendering process was conducted and the awarding of the million dollar contract to a Chinese company.
The Kenyan government appears to be bulldozing the project despite the resistance from the opposition coalition and local communities crying for compensation. Reports indicate that the government’s compensation budget is way below what is required even as locals call for full payment against their parcels of land.
Kenya’s National Land Commission is leading the process of land acquisition for the project with its chairman Mohammed Swazuri complaining that local politicians are inciting populations against the project.
“We are facing a serious challenge especially when you find that locals have been incited against the project. Some people want to be paid as much as Kshs10 million for an acre of land, which is just not practical. Kenyans must be told that this is a project that will benefit the whole country and region and therefore their cooperation is required,” said Swazuri in an interview last week.
China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) has been contracted to construct the controversial railway project. The company has already shipped in some 2000 Chinese expatriates for the task that will also see over 30,000 Kenyans engaged to offer various levels of labour and expertise.
The hurdles bedeviling the start of the railway last week prompted a meeting between President Uhuru Kenyatta and CRBC Vice President Chen Yun in an effort to get the project off the ground.
It is understood that during the meeting, the president assured the Chinese delegation that nothing would stop the construction of the railway and that all measures were being taken to address any concerns that would pose a threat to the project.
During the meeting Kenya’s Transport Principal Secretary Nduva Muli said some 133km of land belonging to the Kenya Wildlife Service has been handed over to the contractor while an additional 142km is under the process of acquisition by the Nation Land Commission.
Chen assured President Kenyatta that his company will fully observe the Kenyan laws in ensuring that the environment and national parks – through which the railway line traverses – are preserved as work gets underway.
Concerns have been raised on the security of Kenyan wildlife in the expansive Tsavo National Park where the railway will pass through following high poaching incidents involving members of the Chinese community.
President Kenyatta expressed the need to expedite construction of the Standard Gauge Railway, saying it is one of the key infrastructural projects by the Jubilee Government that will transform the country.
He said the land issue must be resolved quickly to avoid delaying implementation of the project.
“We are committed to delivering this project for the benefit of the people of Kenya and the East African region.
We must hasten the pace of its implementation,” President Kenyatta said.
According to Kenya Vision 2030, Kenyans are set to enjoy considerable cost savings in the next three to five years, once the construction of a Standard Gauge Railway – one of the most important vision 2030 projects – is completed.
The scheduled construction of the Ksh1.2 trillion Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) project will herald a major economic transformation arising from an expected slashing of commodity prices.
The new SGR line, which is a Vision 2030 Flagship project to be implemented by the Kenya Railways Corporation, will typically present an opportunity for the railways operator to run freight trains with 54 double stack flat wagons carrying 216 TEUs per trip.
Source: http://www.busiweek.com/index1.php?Ctp=2&pI=2072&pLv=3&srI=47&spI=28&cI=10