Govt praised For Railway Revitalization

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Joe Ghartey

Wilson
Mogoba, Programmes Director of Transnet International Holdings (TIH), a South
African Railway Operator, has described the speed with which the current
government is transforming Ghana’s railway sector as highly impressive. 

He
commended the government for taking practical steps to revive the western railway
line which has led to the commencement of passenger train service from Takoradi
to Tarkwa. 

Mr. Mogoba
made the commendation when he and some officials of the company visited the
rehabilitated Railway Training School at Essikado in the Western Region to
assess the progress of work there. 

He said
a nine-member team of TIH was in Sekondi undertaking technical due diligence on
the western railway line. 

According
to him, the team had been divided into two. He said one group would look at the
Takoradi-Kumasi-Awaso line to know what needed to be fixed while the other
group would focus on the locomotives, wagons, coaches and workshops. 

Mr.
Mogoba indicated that barring any unforeseen occurrence,
the company would be mobilizing to site by the second quarter of this year
after the signing of specific agreements. 

The acting
Managing Director of the Ghana Railway Company Limited (GRCL), John Essel, said
after it was realized that the level of decline in the railway system was so
bad, there was the need to get an external support to help revamp the company,
hence the collaboration with Transnet.

It
would be recalled that in December last year, Transnet SOC Limited, a subsidiary
of TIH, led by its chairperson, Dr. Popo Molefe, signed a rail revitalization
agreement with GRCL and the Ghana Railway Development Authority (GRDA) for the
restoration of the western railway line in Ghana. 

The
Presidents – Akufo-Addo and Cyril Ramaphosa – of Ghana and South Africa
respectively, witnessed the historic agreement. 

Under
the agreement, TIH was to rehabilitate the line between Takoradi and
Tarkwa. 

The
scope of work included the rehabilitation of the rail infrastructure to ensure
it was safe and reliable, refurbishing of the rolling stock comprising
locomotives, wagons and coaches and where necessary supplement the rolling
stock with additional ones from South Africa. 

The rest included the joint management of the operations of the line with GRCL for it to become a viable commercial entity and skills development, as well as training through exchange programmes.

From Emmanuel Opoku, Takoradi