• Hosts Passenger Rail Experience virtual webinar to kick start the year
• Attended by Africa’s rail CEOs and industry leaders from Angola, Botswana, Djibouti, the Kingdom of Eswatini, Ethiopia, Mozambique, South Africa, and Zimbabwe
• Covers innovation, rail safety and global best practice that could be a gamechanger for Africa

TMH (Transmasholding) the 6th largest rail solutions provider globally and the 4th largest rolling stock manufacturer globally hosted a “passenger rail experience” webinar for Africa’s rail operators on the 3rd of March 2021.

The event was aimed at engaging with industry players and sharing global trends and Africa best practice in passenger rail offerings.

A key topic that was discussed was the role that innovation could play in the fight against the current COVID-19 pandemic in passenger rail as a mode of transport.

To demonstrate this, TMH shared the latest innovation in air conditioning system with the HVAC air conditioning system which has air-sanitizing & disinfection technology to help fight Covid-19. This innovation won the International Rail Journal Innovation Showcase award in 2020 in the rolling stock category.

Africa’s passenger rail is under utilized and has a huge potential in contributing towards the revival of Africa’s economies post the low economic downturn and the covid-19 pandemic.

Worth noting is that as of 2019 only 12% out of the USD 560 million spent on imports by Africa is coming from other African countries and the balance is coming out of the continent.

This signals a huge opportunity for the African region. This is further enhanced by the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and its aspirations of improving and increasing intra Africa trade.

To achieve this, the movement of people and goods is key, rail can deliver on this as one of the biggest enablers of intra-Africa trade.

The speakers at the webinar included Valeria Sharafutdinova, Chief of Marketing of the Passenger Division at TMH and Mr. Wamuka Mwamuka, Business Development & Sales Director at TMH Africa.

She presented on the over 40 variations passenger coaches that TMH has delivered over the years and the different tailor-made specifications that can be incorporated into each product design. This includes easy access platforms for differently abled persons, luxury sleeper areas for long haul coaches, ergonomic sleeping berths, sunscreen and blackout curtains etc.

TMH Africa’s business development and sales director Wamuka Mwamuka shared on TMH’s delivery of 1300 passenger coaches to the Egyptian National Railways (ENR).

The €1Bn deal which was awarded in 2018 with finance facilitated by TMH involving the Hungarian and Russian Eximbanks. To date over 230 coaches have been delivered on average of 1 coach per day.

“The Egyptian deal showcases our commitment to deliver world class products in Africa. TMH Africa is currently developing its first narrow gauge passenger coach and we plan to deliver on the same scale and quality to the continent. We are here to partner with the continent to deliver on the revitalization of the rail sector,” said TMH Africa MD, Jerome Boyet.