Tanzania, Burundi in conversations regarding SGR link up

Tanzania and Burundi have started official discussions on the practical features of constructing a standard railway gauge railway (SGR) connection after obtaining capital from the African Development Bank (AfDB).

Tanzania’s Finance Minister Mwigulu Nchemba had back-to-back meetings with councils from the AfDB and the Burundi government previous week, the first high-level negotiations since Tanzania signed a $91.76 million contract with the pan-African lender on February 23 to fast-track the plan, whose launch has been behind for over two years due to absence of funding.

Dr. Nchemba and Burundi’s Infrastructure minister Dieudonné Dukundane met in Dodoma on March 15 to match notes from technical professionals from both sides who have been thrashing out the procurement and other plan details.

According to a Tanzania Railway Corporation public bill issued back in August 2022, the plan will be administered together with their Burundi colleagues, ARTF, but all shared procurement will be supervised by Tanzania.