SGR freight and dry port cargo in Tanzania

The SGR line

TRC says the SGR uses 1.435 m standard gauge and is designed for electric trains at 160 km/h. It says one train can carry up to 10,000 tonnes, about the load of 500 trucks ¹. Its project page lists five phases from Dar es Salaam to Mwanza, with Dar es Salaam to Morogoro launched on 12 April 2017 ¹. That page gives no completion figures and was not current on 24 October 2026 ¹.

The Controller and Auditor General, Charles Kichere, made a four-day visit to SGR works toward Kigoma and Mwanza, TRC reported on 10 October 2026. TRC quoted him saying the project costs over TSh 35 trillion and is progressing well ⁷.

Kwala dry port

Transport Minister Makame Mbarawa said on 25 July 2025 that President Samia Suluhu Hassan would open the Kwala dry port in Kibaha District on 31 July 2025 and launch SGR cargo services to Dodoma. He said Kwala would receive about 30 percent of all cargo from Dar es Salaam port, as reported by Nancy Mawole of Daily News ⁵.

The Citizen reported on 31 July 2025 that two trains served the dry port each day, each with 20 wagons carrying 40 containers. Kwala is linked to the SGR and by a 15 km concrete road to the Morogoro highway, as reported by Julius Maricha ⁶.

SGR container trains

The government said freight haulage from Dar es Salaam port to Dodoma on the SGR would begin in February 2026, as reported by Hellen Nachilongo of The Citizen on 28 November 2025 ².

TRC launched container transport on the SGR with a train from Pugu to Ihumwa in Dodoma Region, about 420 km from Dar es Salaam. The first train had 50 wagons and 100 containers and the first client was GSM Group, as reported by Rosemary Mirondo of The Citizen on 18 February 2026 ⁸.

The Guardian reported on 20 February 2026 that TRC received 264 SGR freight wagons in December 2024, 200 for containers and 64 for loose cargo. It said Dodoma cargo is offloaded at Ihumwa ICD and an ICD is planned in Morogoro for cargo bound for Mbeya and Iringa ⁹.

Isaka and planned dry ports

• Isaka: registered by TRC as a dry port in September 1999, on 11.04 hectares, handling up to 13,000 TEUs. Cargo needs a through bill of lading or combined transport document naming Isaka ³.
• Planned TPA dry ports: an undated Ministry of Transport investment brochure hosted by TPA says TPA plans to develop dry ports at Ihumwa in Dodoma, Katosho in Kigoma, Fela in Mwanza and Kurasini in Dar es Salaam ⁴.

Dry port rules

The Dry Port Tariff Order, 2026 was made under the Tanzania Shipping Agencies Act and published on 4 September 2026 as GN 257. It comes into operation fourteen days after publication ¹⁰. It defines a dry port as an inland common user facility linked to a sea port by road or rail ¹⁰.

Cargo reaches a dry port in port extension mode, where the port operator designates the dry port, or in shipper nomination mode, where the bill of lading names it. Free storage is at least 7 days for local cargo and at least 15 days for transit containers. A nomination fee is capped at US$10 per bill of lading ¹⁰.