{"id":797128,"date":"2026-03-21T12:44:21","date_gmt":"2026-03-21T09:44:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/?p=797128"},"modified":"2026-03-21T12:44:24","modified_gmt":"2026-03-21T09:44:24","slug":"kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/","title":{"rendered":"President Ruto: Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension to cut costs, boost regional trade"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 21 \u2014 President William Ruto has said that the extension of Kenya\u2019s Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) from Mombasa through Kisumu to Malaba will significantly reduce logistics costs and deepen economic integration between Kenya, Uganda, and other landlocked nations in East and Central Africa.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Speaking Saturday during the launch of the Kisumu\u2013Malaba section of the railway alongside Uganda President Yoweri Museveni, Ruto described the rail corridor as a transformative commercial lifeline designed to strengthen regional trade, empower farmers, and support industrialists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He noted that the rail network will also stimulate the development of industrial parks and special economic zones along the route.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cOur cities and our nations are shaped by infrastructure,\u201d Ruto said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cInfrastructure development does not just connect places; it often creates them. It determines where opportunity thrives, where investment flows, and where prosperity takes root.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ruto traced the origins of the region\u2019s rail network to the colonial-era Uganda Railway, built nearly 130 years ago to link the Indian Ocean port of Mombasa to the interior of East Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The line, which passed through Nairobi and the Rift Valley before reaching Kisumu on Lake Victoria, reshaped settlement patterns and economic activity across the region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe railway reinforced Mombasa as the gateway of trade, while Nairobi rose from a rail depot into a logistical hub and eventually the capital,\u201d Ruto said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt opened the Rift Valley and the lake region to commerce and transformed Kisumu into a vital inland port.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, the century-old meter-gauge railway eventually fell into disrepair, undermining its role as a regional trade artery. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-regional-connectivity\">Regional connectivity <\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The current SGR expansion seeks to restore and modernize that vision of regional connectivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Kisumu\u2013Malaba section, measuring about 107 km, will complete a nearly 1,000-km rail link from Mombasa to the Kenya\u2013Uganda border, forming part of a broader network planned to extend to Kampala and other East African Community (EAC) states. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The railway is expected to serve countries including Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, strengthening Kenya\u2019s role as a regional logistics hub.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cOur economies are not generating sufficient opportunities to match the pace of our rapidly growing populations. At the same time, our businesses continue to grapple with high logistics costs that undermine competitiveness,\u201d Ruto said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIn many cases, transport and related costs account for between 30 and 40 per cent of the final value of goods.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Currently, cargo takes about 80 hours to move from Mombasa to Malaba and over 100 hours to reach Kampala. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With the new SGR sections, freight costs are projected to drop by at least 40 per cent per tonne per kilometre, while transit times could fall by nearly 30 per cent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-speacial-economic-zones\">Speacial Economic Zones <\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The project is also expected to spur industrialization along the corridor. Special economic zones will be established in Kisumu\u2019s Kibos area and in Busia, linked directly to the railway to attract private investment in manufacturing, logistics, and trade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThis railway will connect farmers to markets,\u201d Ruto said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt will move livestock and farm produce from our hinterland to Nairobi and onward to Mombasa for export; tea from western Kenya, Kericho, and other towns; dairy from Bomet and other regions in Narok.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ruto emphasized that the rail corridor represents a strategic turning point for the continent, laying the groundwork for seamless trade and shared economic growth across East and Central Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThis is not just a railway,\u201d he said. \u201cIt is a commercial lifeline and a regional investment that will transform the fortunes of our farmers, producers, industrialists, and businesses.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The project forms part of broader efforts to expand regional transport networks and position Kenya as a key gateway for trade in the East African region.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>President William Ruto says the Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension will reduce freight costs, enhance regional trade, and boost economic growth across East and Central Africa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14289,"featured_media":797133,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1994,26],"tags":[50321,50320,1981,50323,50324,491,50301,50303,50309,6223,50283,29672,3514,50322,44524,2234,1844],"coauthors":[2146],"class_list":["post-797128","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-eac","category-top-stories","tag-east-africa-railway","tag-east-african-community-transport","tag-featured","tag-freight-cost-reduction","tag-industrial-parks-kenya","tag-kenya","tag-kenya-uganda-trade","tag-kisumu-malaba-sgr","tag-mombasa-kisumu-railway","tag-museveni","tag-naivasha-kisumu-malaba-sgr-2","tag-regional-connectivity","tag-sgr","tag-special-economic-zones-kenya","tag-standard-gauge-railway-kenya","tag-uganda","tag-william-ruto"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v25.7.1 (Yoast SEO v27.5) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Ruto: Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension to boost regional trade<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"President William Ruto says the Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension will reduce freight costs, enhance regional trade, and boost economic growth across East and Central Africa.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"President Ruto: Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension to cut costs, boost regional trade\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"President William Ruto says the Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension will reduce freight costs, enhance regional trade, and boost economic growth across East and Central Africa.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Capital News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"http:\/\/facebook.com\/capitalfmkenya\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/makong.bruhan\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-03-21T09:44:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-03-21T09:44:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/files\/2026\/03\/634bf387-0dae-4d08-9309-fa375b1f298b.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"854\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"BRUHAN MAKONG\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@makongbruhan70\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@capitalfmkenya\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"BRUHAN MAKONG\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"BRUHAN MAKONG\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/e8f90509eb1c7cb2336169485cf7e562\"},\"headline\":\"President Ruto: Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension to cut costs, boost regional trade\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-21T09:44:21+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-03-21T09:44:24+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":621,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/files\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/634bf387-0dae-4d08-9309-fa375b1f298b.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"East Africa railway\",\"East African Community transport\",\"featured\",\"freight cost reduction\",\"industrial parks Kenya\",\"Kenya\",\"Kenya Uganda trade\",\"Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR\",\"Mombasa-Kisumu railway\",\"Museveni\",\"Naivasha-Kisumu-Malaba SGR\",\"Regional Connectivity\",\"SGR\",\"special economic zones Kenya\",\"Standard Gauge Railway Kenya\",\"Uganda\",\"William Ruto\"],\"articleSection\":[\"EAC\",\"Top stories\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\\\/\",\"name\":\"Ruto: Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension to boost regional trade\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/files\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/634bf387-0dae-4d08-9309-fa375b1f298b.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-21T09:44:21+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-03-21T09:44:24+00:00\",\"description\":\"President William Ruto says the Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension will reduce freight costs, enhance regional trade, and boost economic growth across East and Central Africa.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/files\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/634bf387-0dae-4d08-9309-fa375b1f298b.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/files\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/634bf387-0dae-4d08-9309-fa375b1f298b.jpg\",\"width\":1280,\"height\":854,\"caption\":\"Speaking Saturday during the launch of the Kisumu\u2013Malaba section of the railway alongside Uganda President Yoweri Museveni, Ruto described the rail corridor as a transformative commercial lifeline designed to strengthen regional trade, empower farmers, and support industrialists\\\/PCS\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"President Ruto: Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension to cut costs, boost regional trade\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/\",\"name\":\"Capital News\",\"description\":\"Kenya breaking news | Kenya news today | Capitalfm.co.ke\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Capital FM Kenya\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/files\\\/2022\\\/10\\\/CapitalFM-Logovector.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/files\\\/2022\\\/10\\\/CapitalFM-Logovector.png\",\"width\":1645,\"height\":1265,\"caption\":\"Capital FM Kenya\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/facebook.com\\\/capitalfmkenya\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/capitalfmkenya\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/capitalfmkenya\\\/\",\"http:\\\/\\\/www.youtube.com\\\/user\\\/capitalfmkenya\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/e8f90509eb1c7cb2336169485cf7e562\",\"name\":\"BRUHAN MAKONG\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/978c5ec18de3868bbae54f896e8ca8443febd5ef00f0d88e4ee017e23852158d?s=96&d=mm&r=g432b94c1da0bfd457e21ec6b983c28b9\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/978c5ec18de3868bbae54f896e8ca8443febd5ef00f0d88e4ee017e23852158d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/978c5ec18de3868bbae54f896e8ca8443febd5ef00f0d88e4ee017e23852158d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"BRUHAN MAKONG\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/makong.bruhan\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.google.com\\\/url?sa=i&source=web&rct=j&url=https:\\\/\\\/ke.linkedin.com\\\/in\\\/bruhan-makong-90a359a8&ved=2ahUKEwjtgIbq88mQAxW0_gIHHWCeH3MQy_kOegQIBRAB&opi=89978449&cd&psig=AOvVaw2mN4zb8_fXGhBOvNRZp_dn&ust=1761844357816000\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/makongbruhan70\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\\\/news\\\/author\\\/bmakong\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Ruto: Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension to boost regional trade","description":"President William Ruto says the Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension will reduce freight costs, enhance regional trade, and boost economic growth across East and Central Africa.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"President Ruto: Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension to cut costs, boost regional trade","og_description":"President William Ruto says the Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension will reduce freight costs, enhance regional trade, and boost economic growth across East and Central Africa.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/","og_site_name":"Capital News","article_publisher":"http:\/\/facebook.com\/capitalfmkenya","article_author":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/makong.bruhan","article_published_time":"2026-03-21T09:44:21+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-03-21T09:44:24+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1280,"height":854,"url":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/files\/2026\/03\/634bf387-0dae-4d08-9309-fa375b1f298b.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"BRUHAN MAKONG","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@makongbruhan70","twitter_site":"@capitalfmkenya","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"BRUHAN MAKONG","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/"},"author":{"name":"BRUHAN MAKONG","@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/e8f90509eb1c7cb2336169485cf7e562"},"headline":"President Ruto: Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension to cut costs, boost regional trade","datePublished":"2026-03-21T09:44:21+00:00","dateModified":"2026-03-21T09:44:24+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/"},"wordCount":621,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/files\/2026\/03\/634bf387-0dae-4d08-9309-fa375b1f298b.jpg","keywords":["East Africa railway","East African Community transport","featured","freight cost reduction","industrial parks Kenya","Kenya","Kenya Uganda trade","Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR","Mombasa-Kisumu railway","Museveni","Naivasha-Kisumu-Malaba SGR","Regional Connectivity","SGR","special economic zones Kenya","Standard Gauge Railway Kenya","Uganda","William Ruto"],"articleSection":["EAC","Top stories"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/","url":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/","name":"Ruto: Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension to boost regional trade","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/files\/2026\/03\/634bf387-0dae-4d08-9309-fa375b1f298b.jpg","datePublished":"2026-03-21T09:44:21+00:00","dateModified":"2026-03-21T09:44:24+00:00","description":"President William Ruto says the Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension will reduce freight costs, enhance regional trade, and boost economic growth across East and Central Africa.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/files\/2026\/03\/634bf387-0dae-4d08-9309-fa375b1f298b.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/files\/2026\/03\/634bf387-0dae-4d08-9309-fa375b1f298b.jpg","width":1280,"height":854,"caption":"Speaking Saturday during the launch of the Kisumu\u2013Malaba section of the railway alongside Uganda President Yoweri Museveni, Ruto described the rail corridor as a transformative commercial lifeline designed to strengthen regional trade, empower farmers, and support industrialists\/PCS"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/2026\/03\/kisumu-malaba-sgr-extension-economic-growth\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"President Ruto: Kisumu\u2013Malaba SGR extension to cut costs, boost regional trade"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/","name":"Capital News","description":"Kenya breaking news | Kenya news today | Capitalfm.co.ke","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/#organization","name":"Capital FM Kenya","url":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/files\/2022\/10\/CapitalFM-Logovector.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/files\/2022\/10\/CapitalFM-Logovector.png","width":1645,"height":1265,"caption":"Capital FM Kenya"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/facebook.com\/capitalfmkenya","https:\/\/x.com\/capitalfmkenya","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/capitalfmkenya\/","http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/capitalfmkenya"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/e8f90509eb1c7cb2336169485cf7e562","name":"BRUHAN MAKONG","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/978c5ec18de3868bbae54f896e8ca8443febd5ef00f0d88e4ee017e23852158d?s=96&d=mm&r=g432b94c1da0bfd457e21ec6b983c28b9","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/978c5ec18de3868bbae54f896e8ca8443febd5ef00f0d88e4ee017e23852158d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/978c5ec18de3868bbae54f896e8ca8443febd5ef00f0d88e4ee017e23852158d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"BRUHAN MAKONG"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/makong.bruhan","https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?sa=i&source=web&rct=j&url=https:\/\/ke.linkedin.com\/in\/bruhan-makong-90a359a8&ved=2ahUKEwjtgIbq88mQAxW0_gIHHWCeH3MQy_kOegQIBRAB&opi=89978449&cd&psig=AOvVaw2mN4zb8_fXGhBOvNRZp_dn&ust=1761844357816000","https:\/\/x.com\/makongbruhan70"],"url":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/author\/bmakong\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/797128","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14289"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=797128"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/797128\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/797133"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=797128"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=797128"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=797128"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.capitalfm.co.ke\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=797128"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}