Abstract: Evidently, after road transport, rail transport comes in as fundamentally the second most important mode of transport in Kenya, both for freight and passenger services. The Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) is a mega project that the Kenyan Government has invested in after freedom from the colonial rule. Critics are rife with sentiments that Kenya was not ripe for this investment and would have preferred that the funds be invested in other transport infrastructure development such as road networks which is perceived as critical for the moment. To clear and demystify the question of the ongoing uncertainty as to the economic viability of the project, the huge capital costs, allegations of graft and the concern that the projected benefits will fail to materialize as expected, and will not compensate for the high cost of the project, this paper will attempt to analyze the economic benefits that the SGR will achieve for Kenya. The paper will analyze how the SGR has enhanced tourism and trade for Kenya, how the SGR has reduced unemployment, how the SGR has enhanced both the social aspects and environmental conservation in Kenya. The study will review existing literature on metropolitan rail development with a few case studies from both developed and developing countries. This paper will reveal that the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) has massive economic value to the country and beyond and is crucial to development and attaining Vision 2030 goals. The study recommends the completion of the remaining SGR phases in the projected time frame for the railway industry to play a positive role in national development.
Keywords: Standard Gauge Railway, employment, tourism and trade and environmental conservation.
Title: ANALYSIS OF THE ECONOMIC VALUE OF THE STANDARD GAUGE RAILWAY (SGR) AND ITS CONTRIBUTIONS FOR KENYA
Author: Jane Nthenya Oluochi
International Journal of Social Science and Humanities Research
ISSN 2348-3156 (Print), ISSN 2348-3164 (online)
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