Thread by @TheMutaD

Heroes Day. @RailwaysUganda are without doubt the most resilient and honest people out there. Ignored and wished away for 35 years, they have proven that they will be here till the next time the world wants to annihilate itself. Like Peter Zeihan counsels; Keep in mind...1/n

that it is extremely hard to move stuff around. It is easiest to move stuff by water. It is ¼ cheaper to move stuff by rail than by road. To have any chance at civilization or social metamorphosis, any country MUST have an extremely cheap, widely available and sustainable way...

to move stuff (including people). Uganda, as a landlocked country MUST, above everything else, stop joking around with the issue of transportation. We should develop the inter-country links with haste. And, MUST get Uganda Air Cargo rejuvenated. The Standard Gauge Railway...

would come in handy, but it is an expensive way to try and make us slaves to Chinese capital when looked at from many angles. Why not issue an infrastructure bond? The Ethiopians did it with GERD. I am certain we could raise $2 billion as Ugandans if we knew what we were...

investing in and its long-term returns (which are obviously astronomical).
Water, always the cheapest means of transportation is so under utilized, we lose approximately the value of the Tanzanian economy every year for not utilizing Lake Victoria.
monitor.co.ug/Business/Commo…

We are so bereft of even road transport as Uganda and East Africa, and are not exploring affordable, long term solutions to our transport and, therefore, civilization needs such as plastic roads. Kenya, with its almost $100 billion economy has only 20,000km of paved road...

The total paved (tarmac) road network in East Africa is below 50,000km. Uganda has about 5,500km of that. TZ about 15,000km and the rest have btn 500 to 1,200km.
We face an existential crisis, because we have a population that is set to grow for the next 100 years.

However, state capture means that even quick solutions are not adopted to get solutions to our economic malaise and the threat of climate change and environmental degradation.
Take India. It has laid over 50,000km of plastic road on the last 10 years.
rics.org/uk/news-insigh…

We generate enough plastic waste to build these roads. The only good problem is that they don't get potholes or get deformed. That is where the catch for our people comes in. Without a high maintenance budget, you cut out a lot of fat for many lazy thugs.
But, in order for us...

and them to survive, we need these solutions. Yesterday. India, which has the 2nd longest highway length in the world after the USA, at 5,890,000km had as an aim to have 100,000km of paved road network made from plastic by end of 2021, and an extra 200,000km of tarmac.

Kampala, will have 40 million pple by 2100. It will be the 16th largest city in the world. We need to start planning for it that way. Given that climate change may drive almost all but the richest out of agriculture, this figure cd be reached earlier.

thegeniusworks.com/2018/08/the-wo…

Keep in mind that to move around stuff is hard. And, to move around stuff by water is the cheapest means possible. The current set up of Kampala means that the public transport potential of Lake Victoria, Kampala to Mukono to Jinja to Masaka needs to be looked at seriously.

A rail link along the shores would work wonders, too.
As for @RailwaysUganda, the Lunatic Express, its only those who laugh at you that are lunatics. You have been here for 100 plus years. You are not going anywhere.