Big role seen for China in rail system upgrade

CAIRO - Mohammed Shehata, head of the Egyptian Transport Association, said on Aug 13 that China can be a main player in developing Egypt's railway system.

"China is a leading country in this field," Shehata said, adding that China is always ready to help friendly countries improve their infrastructure.

The ETA is a leading Egyptian NGO that monitors and issues reports on the transportation systems in the North African country.

The NGO chief said China has been helping numerous countries, including many in Africa, to build up-to-date railway systems, stressing that the country will not hesitate to provide Egypt with its expertise in the field of railways and transportation.

On Aug 11, an Alexandria-bound train coming from Cairo crashed into the rear of another train on its way from the Mediterranean city of Port Said, killing 49 people and injuring more than 130.

After the accident, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi urged the government to accelerate the development process of the country's railway network, thereby avoiding more such accidents.

The president gave instructions to form technical committees charged with evaluating the maintenance processes and specifying the needed spare parts for the trains and railroad infrastructure.

Shehata said China is preferred over European countries to develop Egypt's railroad infrastructure because China offers both expertise and finance for development projects, and the costs are usually lower.

"Unlike European countries, China does not decide the companies that will carry out the projects. It also provides finance through generous loans from Chinese banks," Shehata said.

He also said China's participation in rebuilding Egypt's railway infrastructure will help boost the Belt and Road Initiative, which will link Africa, Asia and Europe.

"China is more a partner than an investor," he added.

The Egyptian railway system, Shehata said, is badly in need of renewal, using the latest available technologies. He said Egypt has been using very old methods, railway infrastructure and trains.

"The service that transports millions of Egyptians should be fully updated for the safety of passengers," he said.

The ETA chief also said development should include training those who will be running any new system, adding that diesel locomotives should be replaced with newer electric trains.

Egypt has spent billions of dollars to develop its railroad and train systems, but the development projects did not yield good results because "we did invest in an old infrastructure," Shehata said.

"It is not a good idea to update an already old train or network. The whole network and trains should be modernized, and I believe that we need a pioneer partner like China to make a leap in our railway system," he added.

Xinhua

(China Daily Africa Weekly 08/18/2017 page29)