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EDITORIAL
BOARD
Kenya's SGR economic belt to foster development
Kenya's standard Gauge Railway (SGR) is
due to Kenya China Cordial relations.
China supported Kenya to build the 600-
kilometer railway consisting of a 480-
kilometer Mombasa-Nairobi (Madaraka
Express) and 120-kilometer Nairobi-
Naivasha extension. When completed, the
planned 1300-kilometer SGR railway will
reach Malaba on Uganda border. Along this
railway, a new economic belt has emerged
as a new frontier of rapid modernization.
The new SGR Economic belt is a bridge to
economic prosperity, spurring growth and
modernization, and the railroad is also
creating jobs. At the construction stage in
2019-2023 period, the Mombasa-Nairobi
and Nairobi-Naivasha lines created over
70000 local jobs. A total of 2708 Kenyan
staff were also employed. Over 2285 staff
from diverse professional backgrounds
work at 33 stations along the railway and in
the passenger and cargo rolling stock. The
construction company sub-contracted 157
local companies in the project, with more
than 1000 local companies enlisted in the
building of the railway at different levels.
The SGR economic belt is generating
revenue for the country. The railway has
raised the County's Gross Domestic
Product (GDP) by 1.5 percent. It is
projected that the railway project will
contribute 2 percent to 3 percent of Kenya's
GDP by 2030. As an iconic project, the
railway has attracted many foreign tourists.
Mount Kilimanjaro is visible to passengers
from their seats in the Mombasa-Nairobi
train. The railway has also stimulated
industrialization, manufacturing, value
addition and facilitated skills transfer and
capacity development.
The Mombasa-Nairobi-Naivasha line has
provided a low cost, comfortable, fast and
safe and reliable modern way of
transporting people, goods and services.
The volume of cargo handled by the
Mombasa-Nairobi line has grown steadily
from 2.9 million tonnes in 2018 to
approximately 6.8 million tonnes in 2023.
The SGR is projected to ferry 22 million
tonnes a year amounting to 40 percent of
Mombasa port cargo by 2035. As a result, it
has reduced congestion and traffic start-ups
on roads. As of December 13, 2024, the
SGR had ran 2,815 days of safe passenger
and freight services without any major
accident of the train wagons.
The absent of electricity in these areas is an
inconvenience and a fundamental barrier to
progress .Electricity powers businesses
,schools and health facilities . It enables
farmers to irrigate their crops and preserve
and produce .It turns small ideas into
thriving enterprise . Without power, rural
communist remain disconnected from
these possibilities , trapped in cycles of
poverty .
Cities like Nairobi and Mombasa have
benefited immensely from reliable
electricity . The same electricity that
powers high-rise buildings and digital
economies can am and should transform
rural lives. To address this imbalance ,
Kenya must leverage its wealth of
renewable energy resources . The Country's
leadership in geothermal ,hydro , wind and
solar energy presents an opportunity to
bring sustainable and affordable electricity
to all .Off-grid and standalone systems have
proven effective in reaching underserved
areas.
Partnership between the government ,
private sector and development agencies
are another powerful tool in this journey .
By fostering these partnership and creating
favourable regulatory environments ,
Kenya can attract the investment needed to
illuminate its remote areas and promote the
right macro-environment accelerate the
closing of the power access gap.
The ripple effects vof rural electrification
are immense . They include promotion of
irrigation , education , entrepreneurship and
skilled work .Through innovative financing
mechanisms capability building and
community involvement , Kenya's
electrification efforts will be both effective
and sustainable .It is time for us all to ensure
that no one is left behind , that every corner
of the country feels the warmth and
opportunity that electricity brings
Kenya has emerge as a shining start in
Africa's electrification efforts, achieving an
impressive connection rate of over 75 per
cent. This success has been fueled by
deliberate policies , investments in
infrastructure and an unwavering focus on
renewable energy . However, beneath this
remarkable progress is under coverage of
electricity in many rural areas.
Lighting up rural Kenya offers immense benefits