Jael Keya
Opposition leader Raila Odinga is set to travel to China with President Uhuru Kenyatta next week in a bid to seek funds for the expansion of the Standard Guage Railway.
Speaking on Saturday, Mr Odinga noted that the Beijing trip would enable the country to acquire the Ksh368 billion loan from the Chinese government.
According to the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader, the loan will help revive the Kisumu inland port which for a long while now it had been dormant due to the dilapidated railway.
Odinga spoke in Kisumu affirming, “I will be part of the delegation that will accompany the President to the Asian country next week.
“The new SGR line will extend from Naivasha to Narok, Bomet, Sondu and finally Kisumu,” he concluded.
Odinga, the African Union’s High Representative for Infrastructure Development in Africa, exclaimed that the completion of the SGR will have a huge impact on Kisumu.
“We are going to establish a special economic zone in Kisumu and make the city the hub of East Africa,” he mentioned.
Read: President Uhuru Set to Travel to China to Secure Ksh380 Billion Loan
President Kenyatta and his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni recently affirmed the two countries’ commitment to sticking to the original plan of stretching the SGR all the way to Kampala.
According to reports, officials from the Treasury, Kenya Railways Corporation, the Transport Ministry and the State Law Office met last week to finalise on the details of acquiring the loan ahead of the trip.
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