Tanzania: SGR Progress Wins Permanent Secretaries' Hearts

By Bernard Lugongo

Kilosa — THE tunneling work for Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) from Morogoro to Makutupora in Dodoma has reached 54 per cent, as Permanent Secretaries yesterday expressed their satisfaction on

the progress of the flagship project.

The Morogoro-Dodoma section is characterised by hills with hard rocks, particularly in Kilosa District, Morogoro region where currently the excavation is going on using the drilling and blasting methods.

According to Consultancy Engineer, Amir Hamisi, from the Korea Rail Road- JV, the line will have a total of four tunnels passing under the hills; the longest one will have a length of 1.8 kilometres.

The engineer was briefing Permanent Secretaries (PSs) from different ministries who paid visit to the project yesterday.

The ministries' technocrats were scheduled to inspect the whole project from Dodoma to Dar es Salaam.

Yesterday they had the opportunity to inspect the project from Dodoma to Morogoro and they will today continue from Morogoro to Dar es Salaam.

Eng Hamisi said drilling tunnels was one of difficult work for the construction of the Morogoro- Makutupora section as the area has many hills with hard rocks.

Elaborating on developments of the drilling work, he said, tunnel number one is currently at excavation stage which has been completed by 93 per cent.

He said they're now making final touches to tunnel number two, while tunnel number three and four are at the preparations stage for the drilling work.

"In making tunnels we use either drilling or explosion depending on type of rock," Eng Hamisi said.

Permanent Secretary in the Works, Transport and Communication Ministry Dr Leonard Chamuriho said construction works for phase two of the project from Morogoro to Dodoma have been completed by 25.8 per cent.

"The job which has been done so far is big and we're satisfied with the speed," Eng Chamuriho stated. His remarks were echoed by chairman of the Board of Directors of the Tanzania Railway Corporation (TRC), Prof John Kondoro.

The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Constitution and Legal Affairs, Prof Sifuni Mchome, who led the delegation, expressed their satisfaction on the progress of the project. "We have really been amazed with the ongoing construction works.

I call upon Tanzanians to ignore individuals who downplay the execution of the project," Prof Mchome urged.

The PS said it was important for them to visit and assess the project instead of just convening for meetings to discuss something which they had no idea how it looked like.