The African Development Bank has cleared two of the five environmental and social documents submitted for disclosure, allowing them into the public domain for scrutiny. The project describes the clearance as a step closer to financial close.
The resettlement action plan is not settled: the bank returned further comments on it on 6 August 2026, and the project is still working through them. No date for financial close has been announced, and construction has not started.
The African Development Bank has cleared the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment and the Emergency Preparedness and Response Plan for Uganda's Standard Gauge Railway, allowing both documents to be disclosed publicly.
The bank issued the clearance in early August 2026, after months of engagement with the project's technical teams.
Five environmental and social documents were submitted to the bank for disclosure: the updated impact assessment, a Resettlement Action Plan, a Stakeholder Engagement Plan, the Emergency Preparedness and Response Plan and a Security Management Plan. The project resubmitted the revised impact assessment and the Stakeholder Engagement Plan on 10 July 2026 after the bank raised further comments.
On 6 August 2026 the bank provided additional comments on the Resettlement Action Plan, which are being addressed.
Development of the railway is to be funded by the Government of Uganda at 15%, development finance institutions at 25% and export credit agencies at 60%.
Early works at the Iganga camp site are nearing completion. A sleeper factory, batching plant, materials yard, workers' camps and related facilities are being set up in preparation for the start of construction.
