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The determination of the Akufo-Addo government to inject a new life into the country’s railway sector is expected to receive a major breakthrough in no time, as the country enters into a strategic partnership with South Africa for the development of the sector.

This was the culmination of a fact-finding visit by a ministerial team to Transnet, South Africa’s state-owned operators of rails, ports and pipelines, engineered by Adasa Keteke Company Ltd, local partners of Transnet.

The team included the sector Minister, Joe Ghartey; Acting MD of the Ghana Railway Company Ltd, John Essel; Technical Director of the Ghana Railway Development Authority, Lord Laud Quansah, and other officials from the ministry.

As part of the agreed interim solution, ahead of the signing of the permanent agreement, expected within the next three months, Transnet is supplying six locomotives and 110 wagons “on favourable lease terms.”

In addition, 24 passenger coaches, three power vans and two kitchens are to be supplied to the GRCL, to be used to provide passenger services on the Takoradi-Tarkwa and the Accra-Nsawam railway lines.

The terms of the lease shall remain in force until the permanent arrangement has been made, with the cost of the lease to be absorbed into the permanent agreement.

A technical team from Ghana is already in South Africa inspecting all the Equipment and Rolling stock to be supplied by Transnet, with the aim of selecting the most suitable ones that will offer the required efficiency and effectiveness within Ghana’s railway set-up.

Their counterparts from Transnet are also visiting Ghana in two weeks time to conduct a track condition assessment of the Western Railway Line and also confirm the available traffic on the corridor, to ensure that the solutions to be provided conform to acceptable standards.

Transnet will also act as Technical Advisors for the rehabilitation works on the Accra-Nsawam and Accra-Tema sub-urban railway lines, with the feasibility of extension to Koforidua, as well as providing technical advice for the extension of freight services on the Western Railway Line from Tarkwa to Awaso and also from Dunkwa to Kumasi.

Transnet, through its School of Rail, is also to provide capacity and skills development training programmes to 20 Ghanaian officers in the field of Railway Safety and Security.

In addition to this, six officers from the GRCL, GRDA and the sector ministry will also be provided post-graduate training in Railway Engineering.

At a meeting with Praviv Gorrdhan, South Africa’s Minister for Public Enterprises, the Minister for Railways Development, Joe Ghartey, expressed delight at the giant and impressive strides South Africa had made in its rail sector, to the extent that it has the capacity not only to build wagons and coaches but also manufacture locomotives.

He was confident that Ghana’s partnership with South Africa would go a long way to bring complete transformation in the country’s rail sector, stressing the need for more cooperation among African countries.

Mr Ghartey lamented that one of the tragedies of Ghana’s post colonial development was the complete neglect of the railway sector. While South Africa has about 30,000 km of rail, Ghana now has, operationally, about 60km of rail.

“My team is very impressed with what they have seen and it has reassured us that we are on the right path,” he stated.

On the interim solution, which will see Ghana getting 110 wagons, 6 locomotives, 24 passenger coaches, among others, an elated Mr Ghartey said: “We can't wait to announce this to the president and the people of Ghana.”

Later in an interview, Mr Ghartey noted that the impact of what Government was doing in the rail sector was “totally transformational.”

“We have not even started and people are already writing [to] us, telling us they want to move gas and petroleum products by rail,” he stated.

Touching on the visit, the minister said the trip had “shown us clearly that we are on the right path; the discussions so far tell me we are on the right path: we have the correct vision; the president’s vision is right and we will transform this nation.”

For his part, Praviv Gorrdhan expressed the admiration of South Africa for Ghana, especially in terms of support in the days of struggle for political liberation, and pledged his country’s continued cooperation with Ghana for the development of the two countries.

Also in an interview, John Essel, Acting MD of GRCL, was confident the company would soon be on its feet.

“The company went down so much and so we lack several things: the lack of wagons for freight services; locomotives are very old. The government has supported us with over $500,000 to bring in imported spare parts. So, if we are able to beef up our locomotive and wagon position then we will be able to haul several more tonnes of manganese ore,” Mr Essel added.

Earlier in a meeting with the Ghanaian team, Chief Executive Officer of Transnet International Holdings, Petrus Fusi, disclosed that the company controls 30,000km of rail lines in South Africa, with its operations extended into Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana and Burkina Faso.

“Our core capability is around rail, ports and pipeline. So, we are looking at all the opportunities in Ghana. The trick in Ghana is for us to engage, build confidence and we believe the customers would begin to come onto that network. We love rail; it is our core strength at Transnet. We are the best,” he told the delegation.

For his part, Kojo Quainoo, Executive Director of Adasa Keteke Company Ltd, local partners of Transnet, expressed the readiness of his company to ensure that the country’s rail sector gets the required transformation to reposition it to contribute effectively to the economic development of the nation.

“Transnet, through its local partner, Adasa Keteke, is seeking to enter into a long-term partnership to resuscitate, operate and manage the railway industry in Ghana. Every Ghanaian has a responsibility of contributing towards national development; as part of the responsibilities of Adasa Keteke, we have decided to invest heavily and focus on the infrastructural projects as a way of helping Ghana to grow, and also actualize the vision of the president: ‘Ghana Beyond Aid’. The partnership with Transnet further strengthens pan-Africanism and economic independence of Africans,” Mr Quainoo added.