A political economy of Kenya’s Standard Gauge Railway (SGR)

In this episode, Kamau Wairuri hosts Eugene Ngumi, a public affairs consultant based in Nairobi, to discuss the politics of the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) in Kenya. They trace the origins of the SGR, going back to the building of the old meter-gauge railway by the colonial government, it’s virtual collapse in the 1990s and the attempts to revive it in the early 2000s. After a concession attempt failed, the SGR was conceptualised during the Kibaki-era under the Vision 2030. They then proceed to discuss the building of the Railway by the Jubilee government, noting the congruence of internal and external factors in shaping the project. They explore the challenges that the project has faced including the withdrawal of funding by the Chinese as well as question about the procurement process and its viability. They conclude the discussion with an exploration of the impact this project will have on how future Kenyan governments approach development and whether the SGR may — rather painfully— end up being a massive white elephant.