Union of Africa Railways

[John Ashworth]

UNION OF AFRICA RAILWAYS

Posted on 10 August 2010 by Railways Africa Editor

The 83rd meeting of the executive committee and the 37th General Assembly of 35-member Union of African Railways (UAR) took place in the Libyan capital Tripoli during the last week of July. Attention concentrated on linking African countries with rail connectivity. Said Mohamed Rached, secretary of the authority set up to implement the railway project in Libya, said the UAR aimed at creating an integrated rail infrastructure in Africa in an effort to underline the freedom of the continent, enable it to rely on itself, establish big economic dynamism and increase trade. The purpose of the UAR, he said, is to facilitate the movement of one billion people safely across the continent.

Secretary-general of the UAR Nafati Al-Ghaoul expressed regret at the union’s financial weakness because member countries do not pay their dues. Despite this, the union has carried out several activities including the consolidation of cooperation with the AU Commissioner in charge of basic infrastructure and energy in studies conducted by experts
appointed by the Union.

Those studies, among others, focus on the unification of training programmes in African centres, the assessment of the process to privatise railways in Africa and the participation of the Union in the integrated project study on the types of transport in Africa in collaboration with the European Union.

The general assembly examined decisions made during previous meetings as well as the vision of African railways by the year 2025. The executive committee comprises a chairman and a representative from each of the five regions of the continent.

The general assembly elected Morocco to chair the UAR for the next two years and host the office of the Union’s executive bureau.