Report reveals financial impropriety, lost wagons at Uganda Railways

What the report says

Parliament in Uganda has adopted a committee report on the Uganda Railways Corporation (URC) that sets out allegations of financial mismanagement, disputed procurement, missing wagons and continued encroachment on railway land. The report was presented on Thursday, 3 September 2026, by the Chairperson of the Committee on Physical Infrastructure, Mwine Mpaka, during a sitting chaired by Speaker Jacob Marksons Oboth.

According to the Watchdog Uganda report, the committee examined a Shs125 billion Spanish-funded railway project that included a Shs20.8 billion capacity-building component. It found that much of the capacity-building money went to foreign experts, while some URC employees were allegedly classified as foreign consultants to receive higher payments. The report also raised concerns about direct procurement involving Spanish firm Consultrans S.A.U and its sister company, Imathia Construction, as well as spending on workshops, travel claims, vehicles and office equipment.

The committee said URC could not fully account for land, titles and rolling stock, and that 112 wagons remained unaccounted for in a tracking system linked to a former operator. It also cited losses from scrap wagon sales, including a reported financial loss of Shs2.4 billion. The report directs the Inspectorate of Government to investigate named URC officials and committees, while ministries responsible for lands and transport must produce a railway-land recovery plan. The findings matter because they point to wider governance and asset-management problems at a state utility central to Uganda’s transport revival.

Government officials acknowledged URC’s decline and said efforts are under way to rebuild the railway system. The Executive is expected to respond to Parliament through a Treasury Memorandum.