The 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), the most comprehensive platform that promotes the China-Africa cooperative relationship, will be held in Beijing from September 4 to 6. It comes at a time that sees this cooperation unleash a growing list of beneficial infrastructure on the continent, among which the Karuma Hydropower Plant built by a Chinese company Sinohydro Corporation Limited is a prime example of bringing green momentum to Uganda's economic development.

The Karuma Hydropower Plant, with a total designed installed capacity of 600 MW, is located in mid-northern Uganda in East Africa. In early 2024, Uganda launched the last unit of six turbines at the plant and synchronized it on the national grid, marking its full operation as Uganda's largest hydropower plant.

Power generation boosted

With all units of Karuma synchronized to the grid,  Uganda will see a nearly 50 percent increase in its total installed power capacity from 1,278 MW to 1,878 MW, saving about 1.31 million tonnes of raw coal and reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 3.48 million tonnes per year, providing a stable source of green energy for the country.

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, who has visited the project several times, thanked China for financing the construction of the power plant, noting that it will be important in providing adequate electricity to fast track the economic development of Uganda.

When considering Karuma's ecological impact, Ding Tuqiang, construction project manager, said that the plant is located on a plain, and if it had been built as an above-ground power plant with medium and high dams, it would have caused irreversible damage to the local ecological environment. Therefore, the project took great care to design an underground operation space.

Moreover, as the power plant is close to the Murchison Falls National Park, which is rich in animal and plant resources, environmental protection was fully considered throughout. The design of special nature friendly fishways ensures the growth and reproduction of fish and reduces the barrier impact of the dam on migratory fish, which effectively protected the local ecological environment, according to Uganda Electricity Generation Company Limited (UEGCL).

Benefit local livelihoods

Uganda has one of the lowest per capita electricity consumption levels in the world, with only around 15 percent of the population using the national grid. But after the plant commenced commercial operations on June 12, the electricity price in the country was reduced by 17.5 percent, making electricity more affordable, according to the Ugandan government.

Pre and post construction of Karuma, a large number of migrant workers poured into the area, either to find work at the hydropower plant, or to set up shops and restaurants in the nearby town to serve workers.

"People's lives are getting better and the town is getting busier. With the help of the Chinese, the town has become more and more complete with all kinds of facilities. We have access to clean water and timely transportation of household garbage," said the mayor of Kurama town.

At the same time, Uganda's tourism sector is set to promote the plant as a tourism site to benefit the lives and incomes of locals. The Uganda Tourism Board (UTB), Uganda Electricity Generation Company Ltd., and manager of the power plant have signed a partnership to package and market the superstructure and related tourist products.

Lilly Ajarova, UTB Executive Director described the new venture as the beginning of an important journey, saying the venture will diversify tourism.

More development opportunities

Andrew Kamagara, a local engineer of the plant, said the construction project has exposed him to employment fields he had never considered previously. Although originally a water engineer, the Chinese have exposed him to structural engineering, a skill he now enjoys.

Since the plant began construction, local employees have accounted for more than 85 percent of staff, and nearly 6,000 additional local workers were contracted at the peak of construction. In total more than 15,000 Ugandan employees have been employed at Karuma. Through professional straining, labor competition, and skills transfer, many local employees became the backbone of the project's construction.

Another gain is the increase in Uganda's excess electricity, which South Sudan is soon to benefit from. In June 2023, South Sudan and Uganda signed a power sales agreement to allow Uganda to sell some of the electricity produced at Karuma dam to South Sudan.

"The project will help to reduce energy poverty in South Sudan, which is currently experiencing an energy crisis," said Henry Lukudu, a Sudanese electrician based at Elegu Trading Centre on the Uganda border, according to ChinAfrica magazine.

The Karuma hydropower project is one of Uganda's leading mega development projects and a key project for Uganda's 2040 development plan. Also, it's a flagship project of cooperation between Uganda and China under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The close cooperation between China and Uganda has brought win-win cooperation to Uganda and tangible benefits to the Ugandan people.