Construction of a 1000-km railway line connecting Ghana to Burkina Faso is expected to begin in January 2022 - with the procurement process for a private investment partner having entered its final stage.
That’s according to a statement from the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) which states that three pre-qualified bidders for the Ghana-Burkina Faso Railway Interconnectivity Project have been issued with Request for Proposals documents.
The bidders - China No 10 Engineering Company, African Global Group, and Frontline Advisors - are expected to present their technical and financial proposals within 90 days for evaluation and eventual selection.
According to the statement, Minister for Railway Development, John-Peter Amewu, said negotiations around the start of physical construction works were expected to be finalised in the last quarter of 2021.
“The two countries further agreed that in the first quarter of 2022, we should be able to see actual construction of this project. We can confidently report to our two Presidents that the project is on course,” he said.
The acting chief executive officer of the Ghana Railway Development Authority, Yaw Owusu, added that the rail project was expected to take about five years to complete.
