Regional lobbying group to promote rail option

Moves are afoot to create a Southern African lobbying group to promote the use of rail transport regionally, Gideon Mahalalela, past president of the Southern African Railways Association (Sara), told FTW. “Rail is a cheaper and more environmentally friendly way to move cargo than road or air, and goes places sea transport can’t reach. But we need to do more to lobby governments,” said Mahlalela. To this end, regional rail companies under the Sara banner will push the case for rail use at the SADC Secretariat in Windhoek. “SADC sets regional transportation policy, and all governments sign on. It is up to the individual governments to then implement the policy,” said Mahlalela, explaining a strategy aimed at the regional body rather than a scatter-shot approach targeting individual nations. All Southern African countries are represented in Sara with the exception of Lesotho, which has no rail system but aspires to acquire one. “We want to press the case that rail is costefficient and is better environmentally. We have always sought a level playing field for rail because road transport is subsidised by public money that is used to build the road infrastructure. Governments don’t build rail infrastructure. We, the rail companies do. But the public stands to benefit from greater rail use,” said Mahlalela, who is CEO of Swaziland Railways. He did not say when the lobbying body would be established or whom it would comprise, but he said all Sara member rail lines were being consulted on the initiative.