The Islamic Development Bank’s (IsDB) Executive Board has approved financing worth EUR 650.75 million for Uganda’s Standard Gauge Railway project, marking the largest single-project amount the Board has ever sanctioned for the country, according to Uganda’s Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development.
The approval was made on the sidelines of the 51st IsDB Group Board of Governors’ Annual Meetings, held in Baku, Azerbaijan, from June 16 to 19, 2026, under the theme “Regional Integration for Sustainable Prosperity.”
Uganda’s delegation was led by Permanent Secretary/Secretary to the Treasury (PSST), Dr. Ramathan Ggoobi, who served as Temporary Governor for the country. Dr. Ggoobi reaffirmed government commitment to achieving financial closure on the railway project by November 2026.
The IsDB financing will go toward construction of the Jinja Nile Bridge (553 metres) and the Mbuya–Kampala tunnel (2.12 kilometres), along with six railway stations — Tororo, Iganga, Jinja, Lugazi, Kampala East, and Kampala City — and three workshops at Kampala East, Jinja, and Tororo.
As of the end of May 2026, Uganda and the IsDB had eight signed public operations, comprising loans and grants worth a combined USD 896.55 million, with the bulk of that financing — USD 721 million — channelled through the Integrated Transport Infrastructure Services Program.
Other IsDB-backed projects in Uganda span technical and vocational education and training, road upgrades including the Muyembe–Nakapiripirit and Rwenkunye–Apac–Lira–Acholibur roads, irrigation schemes in Unyama, Namalu and Sippi, the Katine–Ochero road upgrade with town access roads in Kaberamaido and Kalaki, construction of the Masindi Port Bridge, the Kyenjojo road network, the Kumi–Ngora–Serere–Kagwara road, and regional oncology centres in Arua and Mbale.
Speaking at the Governors’ Round Table, Dr. Ggoobi commended the IsDB for launching its Islamic Concessional Fund (ICF) in 2026, an initiative aimed at raising the bank’s total concessional financing to roughly 15 percent of its annual approvals to help close the gap between mounting global debt and the need for sustainable development.
He noted that the fund is increasingly vital as traditional foreign aid flows decline in both volume and reliability, widening financing gaps for developing economies. Citing shifts in the global financial architecture, Dr. Ggoobi called on multilateral development finance institutions such as the IsDB to reform and become more inclusive, adaptive, and responsive to the needs of their member countries.
