The Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) will lead the training of engineers to fast track the construction of the standard gauge railway. This is according to the National Enterprise Corporation Managing Director, Maj Gen James Mugira, at the ministry of Defence headquarters in Mbuya, a Kampala suburb.
NEC is a state Corporation that was established in 1989 as a commercial arm of the army. “We shall extend specialized training to all our officers in the UPDF Engineering Brigade including the wananchi (civilians) towards the realization of this big project,” he said.
Gen Mugira was speaking at the welcome ceremony of ten UPDF/NEC officers who attained specialized training in railway construction from China’s Shijiazhuang Tiedao University.
The training The group of ten engineers will train other officers in the engineering brigade and staff at the ministry of works and transport on the construction of the modern railway facility. The ten underwent a three month training, which was sponsored by the China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd (CHEC), the contractor for the construction of the standard gauge railway. Speaking at the same function, Prof Wang Yuesen the Chancellor of Shijiazhuang Tiedao University promised to avail more study opportunities for Ugandan engineers.
Meanwhile, representing CHEC, Mr Wang An said that the engineers exhibited the desired outcome and will ably complement the Company’s undertakings during the construction phase.
“We knew that the three months of specialized training at Shijiazhwang Tiedao University will not be easy but these ten engineers have proved that they have all it takes,” Mr Wang An said.
Extract from ConstructionReview.com