{"id":1516,"date":"2016-04-06T11:56:27","date_gmt":"2016-04-06T10:56:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.iese.edu\/africa\/?p=1516"},"modified":"2016-10-26T16:00:10","modified_gmt":"2016-10-26T15:00:10","slug":"agenda-2063-ii-connecting-africa-through-high-speed-trains","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.iese.edu\/africa\/2016\/04\/06\/agenda-2063-ii-connecting-africa-through-high-speed-trains\/","title":{"rendered":"Agenda 2063 (II): Connecting Africa through high-speed trains"},"content":{"rendered":"

I haven\u2019t had the opportunity to travel by train in Africa<\/strong>. I guess that would be quite an experience! Most likely, an interesting combination of beauty, excitement, and cultural experience. One of the flagship projects of Agenda 2063 is the creation of an integrated\u00a0high-speed train\u00a0network<\/strong> that connects all African capitals and commercial centers<\/strong> in the continent. Such a network will facilitate movement of goods, people, and services.<\/p>\n

\"Africa
Kenya\u2019s railroad was built during colonial times<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What\u2019s the current situation of railroad transport in sub-Saharan Africa?<\/strong> Let\u2019s have a look at some data<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\"Africa<\/a><\/p>\n

Reference points:<\/p>\n

\"Railway<\/a><\/p>\n

The information above is taken from data provided by the World Bank which are incomplete<\/strong>. For instance, Kenya\u2019s railway system was built during colonial times. Nowadays, there\u2019s a project to build a line to connect East African countries. None of this is included in the official statistics of the World Bank.<\/p>\n

Not unexpectedly, South Africa stands out<\/strong>. It also stands out in terms of perceived quality of its railroad transport<\/strong>, according to the Global Enabling Trade Report 2014<\/a>. Its famous high-speed Gautrain is a 80-km route for mass transportation in Johannesburg\u2019s vicinity<\/strong>. I\u2019ve used it as very safe transportation to the airport.<\/p>\n

Still a long way to go to reach the goal to connect all capitals and commercial centers by high-speed train. But one step after another. As in many other areas, maybe Africa has the opportunity to leapfrog in rail transportation and jump directly to high-speed trains <\/span><\/a>. Hopefully, this will contribute boosting economic activity<\/strong> in ways that don\u2019t leave behind the underprivileged. Quite the contrary, by improving the movement of goods, I hope these investments will result in an increased integration for all.<\/p>\n

Related posts:<\/p>\n