On 9 April 2026, over 200 participants joined the UIC Africa Freight webinar entitled “Rail freight: What is the situation and what does the future hold?”. The session focused on international rail freight development in Africa, with presentations from various railway companies and UIC representatives.

François Davenne, UIC Director General, opened the session, discussing the importance of safe international traffic between African countries, followed by Bertrand Minary, UIC Director of Freight and Passenger Departments, Coordinator of Middle East and Latin America Regions, who emphasised that rail freight must be integrated into global supply chains and highlighted UIC’s support for operations, safety, and digitalisation.

Hakan Gunal, Senior Freight Advisor, then presented UIC’s freight corridor approach using the Middle East region as a case study, demonstrating the need for harmonised rules, faster border processes, and digitalisation to create effective cross-border rail freight networks.

Mounir Mhaji, Commercial Director of Freight and Logistics, Moroccan National Railways (ONCF) which holds the UIC Africa Region chairmanship, discussed the importance of freight for the Africa region within the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), offering an vital opportunity to stimulate economic growth and sustainable development across the continent. The company also shared its successful experience in operating corridors for phosphate and automotive traffic, showing how they handle shared infrastructure between passenger and freight services.

The Uganda Railways Corporation presented their role in connecting Uganda to global trade through the Northern and Central Corridors, linking to ports in Mombasa and Dar es Salaam.

The webinar concluded with discussions about the challenges of harmonising technical and legal standards across borders, with participants noting the importance of data collection and stable legal frameworks for successful rail freight development.