President William Ruto has confirmed that the construction of the Kenya-Uganda Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) will officially begin on March 20 in Kisumu.
The launch marks a pivotal step in connecting Nairobi and Kampala by rail and enhancing trade and travel across East Africa.
Speaking during the Extraordinary Summit of the East African Community in Arusha on Saturday, Ruto said the project would dramatically reduce travel time and freight costs between the two capitals.
“On the 20th of this month, we will be launching the actual construction of the rail in Kisumu with President Yoweri Museveni,” he said.
The Kenya–Uganda SGR agreement, signed in March 2025, sets a target for completing the Nairobi–Kampala rail link by 2028. According to Ruto, the railway will cut travel time from 14 hours to about four hours and lower freight costs by 35 per cent.
The new railway is part of a wider plan to improve transport infrastructure and connectivity within East African Community countries.
Ruto highlighted several related projects already in progress, including the Nairobi–Nakuru–Mau Summit highway in Kenya and major road corridors in Uganda, such as the Kampala–Jinja and Jinja–Malaba–Busia–Kisumu routes.
He noted that a market sounding conference for the Jinja–Malaba–Busia–Kisumu section was successfully held in November 2025, an important step in moving the corridor project forward.
Ruto also pointed to the Mombasa–Tanga–Bagamoyo coastal road, which is already transforming trade between Kenya and Tanzania.
“The construction of the Mombasa–Tanga–Bagamoyo coastal road has progressed to 62 per cent completion, with 460 kilometres of the 720-kilometre stretch already operational,” he said, adding that cargo transit time has been reduced by nearly 40 per cent.
Turning to Tanzania’s rail progress, Ruto said the country’s SGR has started changing both passenger and cargo transport.
“Tanzania’s SGR passenger services, which started on June 14, 2024, currently move an average of 10,000 passengers daily between Dar es Salaam and Dodoma,” he said. Freight operations from Pugu station to the Ihumwa Inland Container Freight Station also began on June 27 last year, further boosting regional logistics.
“These developments represent a great stride for our community as we continue strengthening regional integration through infrastructure,” Ruto said, emphasizing the role of transport networks in supporting economic growth across East Africa.
