Gulu–Nimule Road is a road in the Northern Region of

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The sou ...

, connecting the city of

Gulu Gulu is a city in the Northern Region of Uganda. It is the commercial and administrative centre of Gulu District. The coordinates of the city of Gulu are 2°46'54.0"N 32°17'57.0"E. The distance from Gulu to Kampala, Uganda's capital and larg ...

Gulu District Gulu is a City in the Northern Region of Uganda. The regional headquarters are located in the city of Gulu, which is also the administrative capital of Northern Uganda The city consist of two main divisions... Gulu west and Gulu east. Locati ...

and the town of

Nimule Nimule is a city in the southern part of South Sudan in Magwi County, Eastern Equatoria. It lies approximately , by road, southeast of Juba, the capital of South Sudan and largest city in the country. The town also lies approximately , by road, no ...

Eastern Equatoria State Eastern Equatoria is a state in South Sudan. It has an area of 73,472 km². The capital is Torit. On October 1, 1972, the state was divided into Imatong and Namorunyang states and was re-established by a peace agreement signed on 22 Februa ...

South Sudan South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the ...

, just north of the international border between the two countries. The road, known as Highway A104 in Uganda, continues into South Sudan as Highway A43.

Location

The Gulu–Nimule Road starts at

and continues north, through

Pabbo Pabbo, sometimes spelled as Pabo, is a municipality in Amuru District of the Northern Region of Uganda. Location Pabbo is on the Gulu-Nimule Road, the main highway (A-104) between Gulu and the border with Southern Sudan at Nimule. Pabbo is appr ...

, Atiak,

Bibia Bibia is a municipality in the Amuru District of the Northern Region of Uganda. Location Bibia is in the Acholi sub-region of the Northern Region. It is approximately , by road, north of Atiak, the nearest town in the district. Bibia is approxi ...

and

Elegu Elegu is a town in the Northern Region of Uganda. It sits across the international border from the town of Nimule, South Sudan. Location The town is in Amuru District, Acholi sub-region, at the international border with South Sudan, approximate ...

, before ending in

at the border between Uganda and South Sudan, a distance of approximately . The coordinates of the road near Atiak in

Amuru District Amuru District is a district in Northern Uganda. Like most Ugandan districts, it is named after its 'chief town', Amuru, where the district headquarters are located. Location Amuru District is bordered by Adjumani District to the north, South ...

are 3°17'02.0"N, 32°07'04.0"E (Longitude:3.283889; Latitude:32.117778).

Overview

Before 2009, the Gulu–Nimule Road was a gravel-surfaced, two-lane road. It is a major route of transportation between Uganda and South Sudan. During the rainy season, the road became impassable, as was the case in 2008 when rains closed it for a week. In March 2009, the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inte ...

agreed to fund the engineering design of the improved road to an all-weather tarmac surface. Vice Consulting Engineers, a

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

n firm, was awarded the contract to design the road at a cost of US$800,000. The

government of Japan The Government of Japan consists of legislative, executive and judiciary branches and is based on popular sovereignty. The Government runs under the framework established by the Constitution of Japan, adopted in 1947. It is a unitary stat ...

, through the

Japan International Cooperation Agency The is a governmental agency that delivers the bulk of Official Development Assistance (ODA) for the government of Japan. It is chartered with assisting economic and social growth in developing countries, and the promotion of international co ...

(JICA), and the

will provide the loans to fund the construction, expected to cost US$102 million.

Construct timeline

After several delays, the contract for the

– Atiak section, measuring , was awarded to China Henan International Corporation, a

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

construction Group that had successfully completed civil engineering projects in various

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

n countries, including Guinea, Liberia,

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...

, Rwanda and

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...

. The costs for this section of the road was met by the Government of Uganda and the

. Construction began in May 2012 and was expected to last two years. The remaining section of the road, between Atiak and

, measuring , will be funded by the

Government of Japan The Government of Japan consists of legislative, executive and judiciary branches and is based on popular sovereignty. The Government runs under the framework established by the Constitution of Japan, adopted in 1947. It is a unitary stat ...

. That contract was awarded to China Railway Wuju Group Corporation, a division of

China Railway Engineering Corporation The China Railway Engineering Corporation (CRECG) is a state-owned holding company of China, which is under the supervision of the State Council. The company is the major shareholder of China Railway Group Limited (CREC), its subsidiary. Hist ...

. Construction of that section was commissioned in August 2013. Completion is expected in May 2016. On 21 July 2015,

Yoweri Museveni Yoweri Kaguta Museveni Tibuhaburwa (born 15 September 1944) is a Ugandan politician and retired senior military officer who has been the 9th and current President of Uganda since 26 January 1986. Museveni spearheaded rebellions with aid of then ...

, the president of Uganda, officially commissioned the completed road.

Points of interest

The following landmarks lie close or near the Gulu–Nimule Road: (1) city of Gulu in Gulu District, the largest city in

Northern Uganda The Northern Region is one of four regions in the country of Uganda. As of Uganda's 2014 census, the region's population was . Districts As of 2010, the Northern Region had 30 districts A district is a type of administrative division th ...

, (2) the town of Pabbo, in Amuru District, approximately , north of Gulu. (3) the town of Atiak, in Amuru District, approximately , north of Gulu. (4) the town of Bibia, in Amuru District, approximately , north of Gulu. (5) the town of

, in Amuru District. This is the last town in Uganda, before the road reaches the International border between Uganda and South Sudan at Nimule. (6) the town of Nimule, in Equatoria Province, South Sudan, approximately , north of Gulu.

References

External links