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1. GULU – JUBA RAILWAY LINE


In 2022, Uganda and South Sudan resolved to fast-track plans to construct a modern railway line linking Gulu City in Northern Uganda, with South Sudan's capital Juba, via the border town of Nimule. Rail is by far the cheapest mode of transport and prioritizing railway investments will bolster trade between Uganda and South Sudan, and support easy movement of people and cargo while the road network is developed. The feasibility study for the 208-km high-speed railway line that is to be constructed by a German company, Jahre Thormahlem Schwei-Btechnik, has been presented, and the project is estimated to cost 688m Euros (about USD800m).


WATCH: https://youtu.be/Aoe6eXkyb_4​

2. GULU LOGISTICS HUB


Uganda plays a vital role as a distribution hub for South Sudan and the Eastern DR Congo, and Gulu serves as the international trunk road that links the port of Mombasa, Kampala, Juba and the DR Congo through two key corridors:


Kampala – Gulu – Nimule – Juba, South Sudan

Gulu – Pakwach –Pader – Lira – Vurra, DRC

 

The Gulu Logistics Hub(GLH) sits on 24 acres in Layibi, Gulu City adjacent to the current Gulu railway station and the main roads to South Sudan and Kampala. Its construction at Ugx29.5 billion was funded by the European Union together with UK's Department for International Development (DFID) through Trade Mark East Africa and implemented through the Ministry of Works and Transport, Uganda and Uganda Railways Corporation (URC). The Hub is designed as a dry port with both rail and truck terminals containing warehouses, container terminals and general lifting equipment. It was developed to respond to the logistics needs of Northern Uganda by improving the capacity of transport infrastructure to serve markets in northern Uganda, South Sudan, and parts of DR Congo. Despite the large volume of goods that go through Northern Uganda daily, en route to South Sudan and DR Congo, there is no distribution hub available and so traders have to make more frequent delivery trips from the Kampala and Jinja hubs.

 

In the near future, GLH will be connected as an integrated multi-modal network, with the single-track Tororo-Gulu Meter Gauge Line that is currently under rehabilitation by URC, under an EU-funded project. On arrival at GLH, goods will be loaded on trains on the Gulu-Tororo railway line, and then on to the OSBP border town of Malaba, to the final destination at the Port of Mombasa through the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) via Nakuru.

Planned Services:

  •  Bonded and Non-Bonded Warehouses
  • Container Handling
  • Break-Bulk
  • Handling & Storage Facilities for freight transporters
  • Customs Inspections
  • Trucking and Shipping
  • Freight Distribution
  • Tax Payment
  • Maintenance and Repair
  • Banking
  • Information Communication Technology (ICT) Services
  • Packaging
  • Re-Export
  • Last-mile Connectivity

 

Desired Outcomes Once Operational:

  • Handle 10,000 containers annually
  • 20% average reduction in transport cost per ton of containerized cargo
  • 30% average increase in round trip time by trucks.
  • Phase I to 20,000 metric tonnes of cargo from Kenya
  • Streamlined trade logistics processes for clearing goods due to closer proximity of customs and other regulatory agencies.
  • Facilitate the quick clearance of humanitarian agencies and streamline the dispatch of humanitarian assistance in the region

 

WATCH: https://youtu.be/obtUCabiRys​

3. ONE STOP BORDER POSTS (OSBPs)

 

Nimule-Elegu is the main border post between South Sudan and Uganda and the busiest land border in South Sudan. At least 90% of the goods that are imported into South Sudan from Uganda are cleared here, and an average of 200 trucks cross this post, every day. Nimule, located in South Sudan immediately north of the International border with Uganda, began operations as an OSBP in February 2020, two years after the one at Elegu in Amuru District on the Ugandan side was commissioned. The operationalising of the two OSBPs triggered a shift from tedious and time-consuming double clearance at the separate country borders to a single clearance stop coordinated simultaneously, by border agencies from both sides. The Nimule-Elegu border post is of equal importance to the EAC, as it functions as the primary gateway into South Sudan from the port of Mombasa. 


Benefits:

  • Improved cooperation and coordination between border agencies have improved service delivery to the business community
  • Shorter clearance times have reduced the cost of doing business for traders
  • Easier movement of trucks and persons between the countries has increased the volume of trade across the border
  • Adoption of modern technologies including scanners and motion weigh-in devices has reduced risks involved in the invasive physical inspection of goods
  • Facilitated informal cross-border trade mostly carried out by women

 

However, the main challenge that remains to fully utilizing the OSBP's to facilitate and boost trade, is the insecurity on the Nimule – Juba road where Ugandan traders have been known to suffer attacks and lose their lives and property.