Back to: O level history east africa notes uganda syllabus
- In Uganda. From Kisumu where the line had reached in 1901, it was connected to Uganda through a regular steamer service (ferry) across Lake Victoria to Port Bell.
- In 1912, Sir Hesketh Bell built the line that connected Kampala to Port Bell to reduce on congestion at the port.
- In the same year (1912), the Jinja –Namasagali line was constructed to encourage cotton growing in Busoga.
- In 1928, the Namasagali-Tororo line was constructed to tap mineral potentials and cotton.
- From Tororo, the line was connected to Eldoret in Kenya to reduce on the congestion at Port Bell.
- In 1929, the Tororo – Soroti line was constructed through Mbale to encourage cotton and coffee growing and enable the transportation of cattle.
- In 1931, the line crossed the Nile and reached Kampala.
- This was to ease the transportation of goods like coffee from the East to Kampala.
- In 1956, the Kampala – Kasese line was constructed to transport copper from Kilembe mines to Jinja for smelting.
- In the 1960’s, Soroti was connected to Lira then to Gulu to transport cotton, simsim and cattle.
- By1965, the line had reached Pakwach to transport tobacco, simsim, Cotton and coffee from Northern Uganda.
Problems faced during the construction of the railway line
- Physical obstacles like forests, steep relief, steep escarpments of the rift valley and rivers caused engineering problems especially in Kenya.
- Wild animals like Lions in the Tsavo region of Kenya delayed the projects as people feared and failed to work for over a month.
- Hostile African tribes also made the construction difficult e.g. the Nandi stole the construction materials before disappearing into their hills.
- The harsh climate like heavy rains and scorching sun also made the construction work very difficult.
- Labour shortage mainly because most Africans were not interested in constructing the railway line.
- The British resorted to the Indian coolies who were very weak and they caused unnecessary delays.
- Tropical diseases like Malaria, jiggers and small pox also proved to be a problem because they claimed the lives of many Indian Coolies.
- Inadequate funds also made the construction work difficult because the cost of the line was too high i.e. the British spent about 8 million pounds and yet the initial budget was 2 million pounds.
- The constructors faced hostility from the Germans who frequently attacked the line e.g. at Voi in order to make the constructors’ work very difficult.
- Lack of food was another big problem because the constructors had to depend on supplies from Europe.
- Language barrier also affected the construction because the British, Africans and Coolies couldn’t easily communicate with each other.
- There was also lack of communication between the constructors and the colonial office in London where orders were supposed to come from.
- There was a problem of poor transport and communication especially when it came to transporting heavy construction materials with in East Africa.
- Lack of co-operation between the railway authority and local leaders was also a problem e.g. the local leaders accused builders for not consulting them.
- British engineers were very few and this always led to acts of indiscipline, disorder and wastefulness on the part of the Coolies.
- Inadequate port facilities in Mombasa caused a problem because it was difficult to off load heavy rail way machinery.
Effects of the Uganda railway (In Uganda )
- Transport and communication from the interior to the coast was made easy for example a journey that used to take months was now covered in a week.
- The line stimulated economic growth and promoted international and local trade e.g. agricultural products could now be exported using the railway.
- The construction of the line stimulated the growing of cash crops e.g. Cotton, Coffee and Tobacco.
- Towns developed especially along the railway routes e.g. Kisumu, Nakuru, Voi, Nakuru, Kitale, Tororo, Mbale and Jinja.
- Construction of the line brought many Indians into E.Africa e.g. a fifth of all the Indian coolies who came to construct the railway remained behind to do business.
- There was loss of lives especially in areas where the stubborn Africans were refusing the line to pass through their lands e.g. during the Nandi resistance.
- Construction of the line caused an influx of Europeans into E.Africa who came to do trade and agriculture for example in the Kenyan highlands.
- Construction of the line created many employment opportunities for many people e.g. station managers, locomotive drivers, engineers, mechanics.
- The influx of whites and Asians resulted into political conflicts especially in Kenya and this resulted in the Devonshire white paper declaration of March 1923.
- Construction of the line brought slave trade and human porterage to an end and legitimate trade was introduced.
- The construction of the line eased the British administration of Uganda and Kenya i.e. troops and administrators were easily transported for supervision.
- The line speeded the development of feeder roads which connected areas where goods were produced to railway stations.
- The movement of missionaries with their property was made easy and this led to western civilization and spread of Christianity.
- The construction of the railway line led to the transfer of Kenya capital from Mombasa in 1907 to Nairobi which was more central.
- Africans like the Nandi and Masai lost their lands because they originally occupied areas where the line passed
- Small scale industries e.g. cotton ginneries, copper smelting and coffee processing plants were established to reduce on the bulk of goods for export.
The contribution of Allidina Visram in the economic development of Uganda
- Aldina Visram was an Indian born in 1863 in India.
- He came to Uganda as a result of the construction of the Uganda railway.
- He began his commercial career in Zanzibar in 1870 during the prosperity of the Indian Ocean trade and Long Distance trade.
- He later moved to the interior of East Africa and set up a base at Bagamoyo.
- During the progress and development of the railway line inland, he set up commercial posts and centers along the line.
- He was the most enterprising Indian trader in Uganda of his time.
- He bought produce from African farmers for sell e.g. cotton, coffee and tobacco.
- He built cotton ginneries in Uganda e.g. in Kampala tp process the cotton.
- He lent out money to African and Indian traders in East Africa.
- He introduced the banking system e.g. he built the National Bank of India and Commerce.
- He reached Kampala and established himself as a powerful trader by 1898.
- He opened the first shop in Uganda.
- He established stations along the river Nile and had agents in Jinja.
- He organized caravans which were sent between Uganda and the coast.
- His trade was mainly in the export of ivory and cotton.
- He acquired a lot of wealth and invested in oil mines, saw mills and a soda factory.
- He was a kind hearted man who gave out many donations e.g. to Namirembe cathedral.
- Many streets in Kampala and Jinja were named after him because of his contribution to the economic development of Uganda.