In a joint agreement, Kenya and Uganda have decided to extend the oil pipeline from Eldoret to Uganda, enabling Kampala to import refined petroleum products directly through Kenya.
President William Ruto said the extension will enhance trade relations between the two nations.
Additionally, the two countries have signed a tripartite agreement, allowing the Uganda National Oil Company to import petroleum products through the port of Mombasa.
President Ruto, speaking in Nairobi during a meeting with Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni on a two-day State visit to Kenya, emphasized the significance of the agreement.
“The Tripartite Agreement on the Importation and Transit of Refined Petroleum Products through Kenya to Uganda whose signing we have just witnessed enables the Uganda National Oil Company Limited to Import refined petroleum commodities directly from producer jurisdictions thus bringing to an end the challenges faced by the sector In Uganda,” stated Ruto.
President Museveni’s visit follows the conclusion of the Uganda-Kenya Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) in Kampala, where both countries pledged to ensure prompt and full implementation of the decisions taken during the meetings.
Dr. Ruto underscored the commitment of the two presidents to provide support for the new agreement to be functional and mutually beneficial.
“Kenya and Uganda are firmly united by relations deeply rooted in shared history and culture and aspirations for regional peace and prosperity,” President Ruto affirmed.
Furthermore, Uganda and Kenya have agreed to extend the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) from Naivasha to Uganda and eventually to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“The meeting also emphasized the importance of extending the SGR not only from Naivasha to Malaba but all the way to Kampala and DRC as an efficient and sustainable Infrastructural artery for the transportation of goods,” Ruto said.
“We have obliged our respective Ministers to take joint urgent measures to mobilize resources for the implementation of this regional shared Infrastructure and report on progress by the end of 2024.”
