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Without the Chinese, Uganda is Going to Find Out if Anyone Else Wants to Loan Them Money to Refurbish a Railway

by Eric Olander
MICHELE SIBILONI / AFP

After failing to secure a $2.2 billion loan from the Chinese to build a new Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) to replace the country’s decrepit century-old colonial-era railway, Uganda is now looking to secure funding for a much more modest refurbishment of its 1,266km system.

The government will need to raise $267 million for the project, according to Charles Kateeba, managing director of the state-run Uganda Railways Corporation. The European Union has agreed to provide a $24 million grant but the rest will have to come from other international lenders.

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