Gulu hub set to lower cost of doing business
Monday January 03 2022
The Gulu Logistics Hub will open this year. PHOTO | GILBERT MWIJUKE | NMG
More than a decade ago, Gulu was a no-go area, thanks to the Joseph Kony-led Lord’s Resistance Army rebels, who were fighting the government then.
Fast forward to 2022 and the town has risen from the rubble, emerging as a key business point between Uganda and South Sudan. Its latest logistics hub, which will link Uganda, Kenya, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, is a testament to its changing fortunes.
The $29 million Gulu Logistics Hub aims to lower transport costs and trade barriers faced by Ugandan traders who export goods to the two countries.
The new facility will provide container and break-bulk, handling and storage facilities — including bonded and non-bonded warehouses — as well as provide space for stakeholders dealing with freight transport.
Ugandan transporters who ply the Gulu-Juba route are optimistic that the hub will increase their profits due to significant reduction in the distance and time their trucks spend on the road.
“This logistics hub will be a huge boost to my business as it will now be possible to transport goods four times a week instead of spending three weeks transporting one consignment from Mombasa to Juba,” said Amos Mugabi, a Kampala businessman who owns trucks that go to South Sudan.
The hub, funded by the EU and the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and is being implemented by TradeMark East Africa. It is expected to be operational later this year.
“The first phase of the construction of the hub is 100 percent complete,” Steven Wokorach, the chief site engineer, told The EastAfrican. “We are yet to complete a two-kilometre access road that connects the hub to the Gulu-Juba road, as the Uganda National Roads Authority is has not yet compensated the land owners for the works to commence.”
Michael Ojatum, programme manager at TradeMark East Africa, said the hub aims to cater to the logistics needs of northern Uganda, South Sudan and the DR Congo by ensuring that “imports from the Kenyan port of Mombasa go straight to Gulu and on to DRC and South Sudan instead of Kampala from where they are usually re-exported”. Goods dropped off at the new facility by road from northern Uganda, South Sudan and the DR Congo can be transported to the Kenyan border town of Malaba through Tororo by rail, thanks to a railway siding that connects the hub to the Tororo-Gulu line.
Convenience
Similarly, goods from the Kenyan border will be transported by rail and then picked up from the hub without traders having to travel through Kampala and incur extra costs of warehousing them in Kampala or Jinja.
As an alternative to road transport, rail transport offers quicker transit time and reduces wear on the road from trucks.
“As a sector, we are committed to building and maintaining a multi- and intermodal transport network to support the economy of the country,” said Bageya Waiswa, permanent secretary in the Ministry of Works and Transport.
He added: “The Tororo-Gulu railway line and the Gulu Logistics Hub are a demonstration of an integrated multimodal transport network and its benefits.”
The hub, to be operated by the private sector, will also provide accompanying services such as customs inspections, tax payment, maintenance and repair, as well as banking and information communication technology connections.
And with on-site availability of a customs office and other regulatory government agencies, it is envisaged that Gulu Logistics Hub will streamline trade logistics processes for clearing goods.
Fast forward to 2022 and the town has risen from the rubbles, emerging as a key business hub between Uganda and South Sudan. Its latest logistics hub that will link Uganda, Kenya, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is a testament to the changing fortune.
The $29 million hub aims to ease the prohibitive transport costs andtrade barriers faced by Ugandan traders who export goods to the two countries.
Ugandan transporters who ply the Gulu-Juba route are optimistic that the logistics hub will help increase their profits due to significant reduction in the distance and time their trucks are currently spending on the road.
“This logistics hub will be a huge boost to my business as it will now be possible to transport goods four times a week instead of spending three weeks transporting one consignment from Mombasa to Juba,” said Amos Mugabi, a Kampala businessman who owns trucks that transport goods to South Sudan.
The hub, funded by the European Union and the United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and is being implemented by TradeMark East Africa, is expected to be operational in 2022.
“The first phase of the construction of the hub is 100 per cent complete,” Steven Wokorach, the chief site engineer, told The EastAfrican.
“We are yet to complete a two-kilometre access road that connects the hub to the Gulu-Juba road, as the Uganda National Roads Authority is yet to compensate the land owners for works to commence,” he said.
Michael Ojatum, programme manager at TradeMark East Africa, said that the hub aims to cater to the logistics needs of northern Uganda, South Sudan and the DR Congo by ensuring that “imports from the Kenyan port of Mombasa go straight to Gulu and on to DRC and South Sudan instead of Kampala from where they are usually re-exported.”
Goods dropped off at the new facility by road from northern Uganda, South Sudan and the DRC can be transported to the Kenyan border of Malaba through Tororo by rail, thanks to a railway siding that connects the hub too the Tororo-Gulu railway line.
Similarly, goods from the Kenyan border will be transported by rail and then picked up from the hub without the need for traders to travel through Kampala and incur extra costs of warehousing them in Kampala or Jinja.
As an alternative to road transport, rail transport is also seen as safer, greener, more efficient and offers quicker transit time, and reduces wear on the road network by heavy trucks.
“As a sector, we are committed to building and maintaining a multi- and intermodal transport network to support the economy of the country,” said Bageya Waiswa, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Works and Transport.
He added; “The Tororo-Gulu railway line and the Gulu Logistics Hub are a demonstration of an integrated multimodal transport network and its benefits.”
Once the new facility becomes operational, it is expected to reduce transport costs per tonne of containerized cargo by an average of 20 per cent whilst increasing cargo trucks’ round trip time by an estimated 30 per cent.
Mr Wokorach said the new logistics hub has the capacity to handle 60,000 containers annually.
“The first phase, will handle 20,000, 20-feet containers. The second phase, which will be constructed as business increases, will handle 40,000 containers of the same size,” he said.
The new facility will provide container and break-bulk, handling and storage facilities – including bonded and non-bonded warehouses – as well as provide space for stakeholders dealing with freight transport.
The hub, to be operated by the private sector, will also provide accompanying services such as customs inspections, tax payment, maintenance and repair, as well as banking and information communication technology connections.
And with on-site availability of a customs office and other regulatory government agencies, it is envisaged that Gulu Logistics Hub will streamline trade logistics processes for clearing goods.