By the time Uganda marked 60 years of independence on October 9, 2022, Uganda Railway was approaching 121 years of the existence. The reason the British constructed the railway line was to connect landlocked Uganda to the Kenyan port of Mombasa.

The planning for the Uganda Railway that was launched in 1901 by the British Colonists started in 1896 through the enactment at Westminster of the Uganda Railway Act, 1896.

Constructed under the supervision of George Whitehouse, an experienced British civil engineer who later became the first manager of the network in 1901.

The meter gauge railway line was one of the infrastructural gifts the British left to Uganda when the Union Jack was lowered and the black, yellow and red coloured flag was hoisting on the morning of October 9, 1962.

Currently, the revamping program for the railway transport is alive under the Uganda Railway Corporation (URC) a government entity that manages the operations of the locomotives in the country.

URC derives its mandate to run the railway, marine and road services both in and outside Uganda for the carriage of Goods and from the Uganda Railways Corporation Act, Cap331.

URC has a rail network of 324km that is currently in operation. This network includes Malaba-Jinja-Kampala main line; Jinja-Jinja Pier, Kampala– Port Bell, Kampala– Nalukolongo and Tororo–Mbale.

However, there are strategic lines on the network that have been out of operation for quite some time and they are being headlined by the Nalukolongo-Kasese which is the one of the longest with 330km. Kasese also had siding lines to Kilembe Mines and Hima Cement factory.  Others are non-operational lines at the moment are; Tororo-Gulu, Gulu-Pakwach and the Busoga loop.

What is URC doing?

Having resumed operations after the termination of the Rift Valley Railways (RVR) in 2017, URC has gone through a process of planning for the rehabilitation of the existing lines to ensure that transportation of cargo continues.

Stanley Sendegeya, the Managing Director of URC, recently revealed to Parliament the plan to revamp the railway network which will help ease the cost of transport especially for cargo both for exportation and importation.

While appearing before the House Committee on Government Assurances to answer on the progress of implementing a presidential pledge on the railway transport, Sendegeya stated they were working on eight major projects.

“We are moving on with rehabilitation of the existing lines and our plan is to have a fully working network by 2025 which is in the time frame for the NDP 3 (National Development Plan)” said Sendegeya.

According to Sendegeya, currently three lines are under rehabilitation while procurement process is on for other lines. The rehabilitation does not relate to the long awaited Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) project that will propel a modern network that is being embraced by other African countries.

Tororo-Gulu line

This project is co-funded by the government of Uganda and the European Union. It is aimed at rehabilitating the 375km line from Tororo to Gulu where another key project of constructing a logistics hub has been ongoing.

The rehabilitation works have however stalled at 18.44 percent of works completed after the contractor; Sogea Satom reached the site on February 4, 2020. The works were suspended last November because of delayed payments for the interim payment certificates and delayed approval of an Addendum to the works contract.

Sendegeya revealed that the contractor, Ministry of Works and Transport and Ministry of Finance have been locked in negotiations on how to settle the payment disputes and then resume work.

The project planned for a three-year duration involves ballasting of the current marram base, the replacement of some of the sleepers and rails while repairing some of them is worth Euro 47.6m (about Sh179.4b). The EU will contribute Sh80.9b while the Government will co-fund the project with Sh98.2b.

Ssendegeya attributed the issues in the delayed execution of the works to the Covid-19 pandemic because most of the experts lined up by the contractor were locked out of the country when Entebbe International Airport was closed to commercial flights.

“There was a big escalation in the scope of the works caused by the delay. The feasibility study was done in 2012 and the estimates had to change. The project was to buy some and replace some but now there is a need to buy new sleepers that need concrete fixing on the rail” he added.

Nevertheless, URC officials believe that the project will be completed as long as the payment issues are resolved and then the scope is renegotiated before the contractor returns to the site.

Gulu-Pakwach

The rehabilitation of the Gulu-Pakwach meter gauge railway line (129km) will cost the Government Sh192b. The project which is under appraisal will involve the replacement of “a few sleepers and rails” that will be repaired and re-used.

Malaba-Mukono

According to URC, the project is for emergency rehabilitation of the line and the works are being undertaken by China Road and Bridge Corporation for 10 months duration. The length of the line which passes through Jinja is 246km.

The physical works for this project are about 50 percent complete with railway track materials; select bridge repair, drainage improvement, railway track renewal, and level crossing construction have so far been done.

Kyengera-Kasese

This is a line that was known for the transportation of copper ore from Kilembe Mines in Kasese District to Kampala. The line has not been operational since the mid-1990s and it has been severely vandalized paving way for human settlement.

URC revealed that the projects whose funding source and budget are yet to be determined will be rehabilitated with new rails, new concrete sleepers, and new stations. These works will include creating a link to the Hima Cement factory in Kasese District.

Ssendegeya said that the project is under appraisal and the concept note has been submitted to the Development Committee in the Ministry of Finance.

There are calls by leaders in Kamwenge District that a siding line be constructed in the area to also connect with Hima Cement to ease the transportation of the pozolana, a natural siliceous material that is mined from the area. The material used in cement manufacturing is transported from Kamwenge to Hima in Kasese on road and the leaders say the heavy tracks are spoiling the roads.

Meanwhile, in a latest turn of events, President Yoweri Museveni is rooting for a better infrastructure to serve Kasese which is a route paramount for business between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. While addressing the 3^rd Bi-Annual Private Sector Chief Executive Officers Forum at Karuma, about two weeks ago, Museveni said that he was not happy that the rails on the Kampala-Kasese line were vandalized and there is nothing to be rehabilitated, hence a need for upgrade to a Standard Gauge Railway (SGR).

“There was a railway line from Kampala to Kasese. These fellows stole the rails. So recently when I took people there to repair it, there was nothing to repair.  What therefore we are doing there, we are going to build a brand new Standard Gauge Railway, from Kampala to Kasese. And then later away, we shall upscale the same SGR from Kampala to the border of Kenya and then to South Sudan” The President said.

The planning for the SGR which is supposed to connect from the border with Kenya to Kampala is not the mandate of the Uganda Railways Corporation, but rather a different entity.

Gulu Logistics Hub

This multi-billion project is one of the flagship government initiatives in the trade and transport sector. Phase 1 of the project has been completed by Ambitious Construction (Contractor) with facilities like warehouses, customs station, railway station, and all the handling facilities for cargo.

The Sh45.7b project which is being funded by the Government of Uganda (Sh9b), UK/Commonwealth Development Office (Sh6.6b), and European Union (Sh30.1b) will have significant advantages as it will be connected to the Tororo-Gulu line when completed.

According to the project information, the hub acts as a designated area for transportation, organisation, separation, coordination and distribution of goods for national and international transit on a commercial basis.

Other projects

Meanwhile, URC has hired M/s Imathia S.A & Consultants to implement the four-year capacity-building project which involves; the rehabilitation of 271.6km of the Kampala-Malaba MGR line especially the section between Kampala, Kyengera, and Port Bell; laying of new steel sleepers along Malaba-Mukono section; procurement of new freight rolling stock and repair of existing wagons and locomotive stations; and, the training of staff to enhance their skills.

This project’s funding will come from the government of Uganda (Sh1.4b), the Spanish Government loan of Sh1.2 trillion, and the African Development Bank (AfDB) loan of Sh1.1 trillion.

The Spanish government loan will cover refurbishment works on the 25km stretch of the Kampala-Mukono line that is expected to end by January next year while the AfDB funds will cater for the 248km component whose works are not yet commenced.

URC has also implemented a two-year project that involved the procurement of rolling stock which includes four mainline locomotives at Sh42b; two brand new reach stackers at Sh6b; and, recalibration of 44 tank wagons. Also in this project, URC will repair 100 wagons with funding from Central Corridor Transport Facilitation Agency (CCTFA).

A US research centre has created a new variety of teff, raising unanswered questions over its safety, ownership, and climate implications.

Last month, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) concluded that a gene-edited variety of the teff would not be subject to its biotechnology regulation. Scientists behind the new semi-dwarf version of the grain celebrated the decision, which allows them to forge ahead with evaluation. They say their genome-edited teff is significantly shorter than traditional varieties and will reduce “lodging” (whereby the plant breaks or bends), cutting yield losses by up to 25%.

According to the plan, researchers from the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research (EIAR) and regulators from Ethiopia’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will eventually travel to the US, where the Donald Danforth Plant Science Centre (DDPSC) is conducting tests. They will examine the performance of the crop and discuss the transfer of the technology.

Once in Ethiopia, it is unclear if the gene-edited teff would be subject to the Ethiopian Biosafety Proclamation or if it would avoid biosafety regulation as it has in the US. Different countries approach genome editing differently. For instance, while the US applies more lenient oversight to gene-editing, the European Union treats the technology as a subset of genetic modification and subjects it to the same stringent safety obligations.

On the surface, the development of the new teff variety may seem like good news, especially in the Horn of Africa. In Ethiopia and Eritrea, to which teff is native, over 100 million people rely on the tiny grain as their main staple. Teff is woven into the very essence of communities’ identity and cultural heritage, and people cherish its distinct taste, texture, versatility, health advantages, and adaptability across diverse agroecological regions. A quintal of teff fetches a higher price than any other grain, making it an essential source of income for many farmers.

What’s good for teff, one might expect, is good for farmers and consumers in Ethiopia and Eritrea – not to mention in the wider world, where the staple’s gluten-free health benefits are increasingly catching on. A closer look at the gene-editing breakthrough, however, raises many sources of concern.

Here are five unanswered questions that should, in fact, lead us to be deeply troubled by this recent development.

1) Will it be safe?

The scientific community is divided when it comes to the safety and ethics of gene editing. While some see the technology as a route to important breakthroughs, others regard it is highly risky. A systematic review of the debate found a wide range of concerns scientists have with non-human gene editing. These include the limited disciplinary diversity among contributing academics, a lack of systematic comparisons regarding the potential outcomes of using such technologies, an underrepresentation of animal and environmental interests, and a disconnect between public and academic discourse on the subject.

Where gene editing has already been deployed, it has often had worrying unexpected effects. Scientists investigating the use of these new techniques have warned of “genetic havoc” as they’ve discovered unintended damage to DNA and found genetically-edited cells to be prone to seeding cancerous tumours. As a report by Friends of the Earth and Logos Environment warns, gene-editing can lead to unexpected molecular-level effects with serious risks to the health of humans, the environment, and whole ecosystems. “As the current research shows, precise edits do not necessarily result in precise outcomes,” write the authors.

This is why the USDA decision not to apply biosafety regulations is so concerning. It is unclear if Ethiopia’s EPA will follow the US’ lead, but even if it does subject gene-edited teff to greater scrutiny, the agency lacks capacity. The EPA is one of the country’s most vulnerable institutions, having been degraded from a ministry to an authority and having lost much of its power. Its biosafety control section is short of laboratories and staff, while its levels of expertise have suffered from a brain drain. Would we know of the complex and potentially damaging effects of gene-edited teff on people’s health, the environment, genetic diversity, and more before it is too late?

2) What will happen to local varieties and knowledge?

The Ethiopian Biodiversity Institute, Africa’s largest and oldest seed bank, holds 6,000 different varieties (“accessions”) of teff. These have survived and adapted, some over millennia, to suit different agroecological landscapes. As the climate changes, famers in Ethiopia have increasingly been turning to these traditional varieties that are proving resilient and adaptable. By contrast, growers are finding that new varieties, promoted by the government and research centres in the name of increasing productivity, are failing to withstand the changing climate.

What will happen to these traditional crops as they mix with aggressive gene-edited varieties? Any Ethiopian plant breeder will tell you that new varieties created by research centres inevitably end up undermining local types and farmers’ knowledge. Ethiopia is already rapidly losing crop diversity to growing monocultures – the exact opposite of what is needed during the climate crisis to build resilience, reduce emissions, and restore ecosystems.

3) Will it usher in more intensive chemical usage?

Gene-edited plants are typically designed to be, among other things, resistant to synthetic herbicides. This suggests that they are intended to be used in a Green Revolution-style chemically intensive approach to agriculture. This model has been shown to be detrimental to the environment, people’s health, and local livelihoods and culture. The heavy use of synthetic fertilisers and pesticides has additionally been shown to contribute significantly to the climate crisis.

How is the gene-edited teff variety intended to be cultivated? Will it be accompanied by the ramping up of agrochemical usage?

4) Will tests in the US be applicable to Ethiopia?

Ethiopia is highly ecologically diverse as seen in its wide variety of soil and vegetation, which require much more research. Conditions in the US, where the gene-edited teff is being evaluated, are distinct. Will results of tests in the US be applicable to Ethiopia?

At the 2014 conference to validate the Biotechnology and Biosafety Policy Implementation Plan for the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), which comprises 21 countries, the then-Head of the Ethiopian Biotechnology Research Institute stated: “I believe testing of GMO crops is done in the United States under the auspices of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). As a result, there is no need for us to do risk assessments in Africa. We should obtain the seeds and plant them.”

I will not be surprised if Ethiopian regulators going to the US to examine the gene-edited teff take the same attitude and approve the seeds without further research.

5) Who stands to gain?

It’s as yet unclear who will own the gene-edited teff variety, and it would be naïve to assume it won’t be patented. Research institutes in the US are unlikely to invest heavily in research and regulatory approval without the prospect of recouping the costs and profiting from the initiative. This raises further questions of who will be allowed to use the teff variety and under what conditions.

Multinational agribusiness conglomerates – with links to universities and research centres across the US – have altered how billions of people produce, distribute, and consume food. Agrochemical and seed companies are always looking to fortify their oligopoly power with the rollout of novel, proprietary genetic technologies including gene-editing and RNA-based pesticide spray. In India, where companies that produce patented hybrid seeds have come to dominate the seed sector, farmers’ independence and livelihoods have been undermined, monocultures have accelerated, and genetic diversity has plummeted. Patented teff risks leading to similar outcomes in Ethiopia.