Eleven locos sail home from Kenya

Terry Hutson THE MULTI- purpose Global Container Line vessel Global Prince returned to Durban last week on a routine call from East Africa carrying a cargo that was anything but routine. Eleven giant diesel electric locomotives belonging to Spoornet formed part of the deck and hold cargo and were being returned from Kenya Railways, where they have been in service for a number of years assisting the transport system in Kenya through some difficult times. Perhaps just as unusual was the fact that the special project cargo was under the control throughout the operation of a woman, Nisa Dawood, who is project manager for Johannesburg-based transport specialist SDV. Earlier she had travelled to Mombasa to supervise the arrival and loading of the cargo and was on hand when the ship arrived in Durban. Since joining SDV, initially as seafreight manager, Dawood has travelled to numerous African countries to supervise the handling and logistics of various project cargo for SDV, which is part of the giant French Bollore Group. In recent years SDV has represented the logistical interests of Spoornet's International Joint Venture (IJV) in numerous countries throughout the continent, where it is currently involved in 17 other railway operations. Last week's shipment was not the last by any means. Further locomotive shipments include several that are being returned from duty in Tanzania. They will travel by ship via Dar es Salaam and Durban while yet another batch will leave for Port Sudan to join those already in operation in the Sudan.