By Ing. Dr. Albert Forde, Director-General, Sierra Leone Railways Development and Regulatory Authority(SLRDRA)
The first article of my railway series provided an in-depth background on the development and closure of our former national railway infrastructure. The second article provided a justification why Sierra Leone needs a national railway system. It also highlighted the strategic relevance and urgency, and some of the expected benefits of a national railway system, particularly in the agriculture sector. For instance, the article highlighted the relevance of a national railway system in the implementation of the “Feed Salone” strategy, through the efficient and reliable transport of agricultural products from farms to domestic and international markets. This, the article highlighted, would facilitate trade between Sierra Leone and its neighboring countries, Guinea and Liberia. And it is in this spirit of facilitating trade and transport of people between member states that the ECOWAS has developed the Regional Infrastructure Masterplan, which includes a regional railway masterplan. The railway network of the ECOWAS regional infrastructure masterplan is shown in the map. The key aim of the regional railway masterplan is to link all capital cities of member states by rail. This article, therefore, provides a detailed information on the regional railway masterplan, including the factors contributing to the lack of development of railways in the region.
The ECOWAS Commission, in the past decade, has worked closely with Member States in the development of roadmaps to guide the evolution of the railway sector. In this regard, the ECOWAS railway master plan was published in 2016. The plan provides a basis for the railway sectorial plan of the ECOWAS Regional Infrastructure Master Plan that was validated by Heads of States and Governments in December of 2021. The plan proposes an integrated network that doubles the existing capacity from 10,188 km to approximately 21,610 km. A key benefit of a fully implemented regional railway masterplan is that it will ensure access to landlocked countries and inland areas, thereby unlocking productivity by providing access to a reliable integrated transport system.
According to the regional railway masterplan, the Dakar-Bamako and Abidjan-Ouagadougou rail corridors are projected to require a capacity increase from 10 million to over 20 million metric tonnes by 2040. It is stated that this level of traffic would justify the construction of a modern railway or the complete and total rehabilitation of all the existing tracks. It is further stated that new rail connections will be required by new ports as well as by major port expansions. The corridors where this approach is most applicable are the Lomé-Ouagadougou-Niamey, Abidjan-Ouagadougou and Tema -Ouagadougou corridors.
A 2016 railway study completed by the ECOWAS PPDU( Project Preparation and Development Unit) brought to attention the fact that the only existing regional connections that remained were the Dakar – Bamako (formerly transrail), and the Abidjan – Ouagadougou – Kaya link (Sitarail), which is a part of the Boucle Ferroviaire linking to the 1,542km Cotonou – Niamey – Ouagadougou rail line. Other operational lines identified include, national connections of Guinea Conakry – Kankan (650km), Liberia’s Buchanan – Sanniquellie (240km), Ghana’s Tema – Kumasi/Tarkwa (600km), Togo’s Lomé – Blitta (267km), and Nigeria’s Lagos – Kano (1343km). The combined effect of deteriorating or absent regional railway infrastructure and interconnections among Member States has been identified as a structural impediment to the free movement of people and goods, hobbling the economic resilience and productivity of the region, as well as contributing to the abysmal operational performance of railways in Africa. The railway study, therefore, recommended the facilitation of regular discussions among railway experts drawn from Member States and the ECOWAS Commission to iron out long-term harmonization of regulatory issues and align regulatory, technical, and operational standards to minimize the potential of the development of a rail network that lacks interoperability.
In addition, the lack of uniform standards is considered a significant challenge in the region; as the metric gauge lines are mostly used in French countries, while the cape and standard gauge are predominant in English speaking countries. Another structural factor contributing to the lack of development of railways in the region is the overwhelming focus of national transport sector plans on road transport infrastructure alone. A key reason cited as evidence is that roads can be easily constructed, operated, and maintained. Rail transport infrastructure, on the other hand, requires careful planning, hands-on operation, and maintenance. It should be noted that while investments in road transport are crucial, overall, a multi-modal transport system offers far reaching benefits that cannot be met by road transport exclusively. Therefore, ECOWAS transport policy makers have the responsibility to ensure a systematic development of all transport modes including railway, river, and air transport to support regional commerce and integration.
To conclude, while railway connections within the ECOWAS sub-region are underdeveloped, there are several ongoing regional and national projects to develop modernized and interconnected networks, with the aim of linking landlocked countries to seaports, such as the Ghana(Tema)-Burkina Faso(Ouagadougou) railway. There are other projects being planned to create an extensive network across member states. The focus of these initiatives is to create jobs, improve connectivity for trade and transport of people, and to enhance economic integration within the ECOWAS sub-region. To ensure our national railway masterplan aligns with the ECOWAS regional railway masterplan, there are proposed lines that connect Freetown to both Conakry and Monrovia; and proposed lines to Bamako(Mali) from the Port of Freetown and a proposed port at Sulima, in the Southern region. Furthermore, our railway regulatory and operational framework will be developed to align with the regional frameworks.