Kenya Railways May Raise Bonds for Rail Upgrade

18 August 2010 (Last Updated August 18th, 2010 18:30)

Kenya Railways (KRC) could issue bonds to raise funds for a railway system in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi. The government has allocated KES1.9bn ($23.6m) in this year's budget to finance the upgrades and has invited the private sector to join the project, according to standardmedia.co.

Kenya Railways (KRC) could issue bonds to raise funds for a railway system in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi.

The government has allocated KES1.9bn ($23.6m) in this year’s budget to finance the upgrades and has invited the private sector to join the project, according to standardmedia.co.ke.

The project is part of a masterplan to replace Kenya’s old commuter trains, which carry five million commuters annually.

The first phase of the project was allocated KES600m ($7.46m) for feasibility studies in the 2009-10 budget, and involved the rehabilitation of 160km of rail network within the city.

The project is expected to be completed by 2012.