Kenya-Uganda railway expansion halted by $64-million funding delay

(SomaliNet) A delay of $64-million in funding was preventing them from meeting their targets for upgrading the 110-year old service, a private consortium managing the railway line between Kenya and Uganda said on Friday.

Rift Valley Railways (RVR) won a concession to run the Kenya and Uganda railways jointly for 25 years from November 2006. It is led by South Africa\'s Sheltam Trade Close.

\"Funding should have started flowing last year, it hasn\'t and that has been a main obstacle as to meeting our targets,\" Roy Puffett, RVR\'s managing director told reporters.

The $64-million loan was expected from the International Finance Corporation and the German KfW.

The company plans to make the railway line a major artery for regional trade but has to contend with a lack of locomotives, wagons and dilapidated tracks.

Puffett said ethnic clashes that followed Kenya\'s 2007 disputed election had led to a disruption of services after parts of the railway in Kenya leading to Uganda were vandalised.

\"International funding of this size requires a lot of comfort from lenders...The events of December did not help matters,\" Puffett said, adding that they were in talks with the lenders.

Years of mismanagement in Kenya and civil strife in Uganda have meant their respective governments have struggled to buy spare parts and maintain tracks and trains.

The 1 900km line that helped open up the continent was laid a century ago and was dubbed the \"Lunatic Express\".-Reuters