Press Release

Inauguration of One Stop Border Post Railway System and HIV/AIDS SafeT Stop Project

Nairobi  | Tuesday, May 23, 2006

The United States Agency for International Development will host a dual inauguration of its One Stop Border Post Railway Station and the HIV/AIDS SafeTStop Project. The event will take place on both the Kenya and Uganda sides of the border on Tuesday, May 23.  The celebration marks an historic moment in the economic development of Kenya and Uganda.

The refurbished railway building at Malaba will house the Kenya and Uganda Revenue Authorities, Customs and other Transit Transport Facilitation Authorities which clear railway cargo passing between the two countries – thus creating a One-Stop Border Post for rail cargo.

The Border Post Railway Station is the first of several similar projects to be undertaken by the two governments, USAID, COMESA and The Transit Transport Coordination Authority (TTCA) to streamline transit times and costs, as well as increase transparency along the Northern Transport Corridor. The development of this one-stop-border post is an important step in transforming the Northern Corridor into an Economic Development Corridor.

In acknowledgement of the challenges that increased cross border activity creates, USAID is also launching the Malaba HIV/AIDS Safe-T-Stop, an innovative program to extend HIV services along regional transport corridors -- in Malaba, Kenya and Uganda. Safe-T-Stop is designed to reduce HIV transmission, improve care for people living with HIV and AIDS, and mitigate the impact of the disease in communities frequented by truckers and other mobile populations.

Events begin in Malaba, Kenya at 9:45 AM.