Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption The railway is financed by the Chinese government

Kenya has opened a major new railway between the port city of Mombasa and the capital, Nairobi, 18 months early. Construction of this 378-mile section was scheduled to be completed in December, but observers said President Uhuru Kenyatta's government hastened its launch to boost his re-election bid in August. Mombasa, Kenya — Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta on Wednesday inaugurated a Chinese-built railway, the country’s biggest infrastructure project since independence, that is aimed at cementing its role as the gateway to East Africa. MOMBASA, Kenya (AP) - Kenya's president on Tuesday opened the country's largest infrastructure project since independence, a Chinese-backed railway costing nearly $3.3 billion that eventually will link a large part of East Africa to a major port on the Indian Ocean as China seeks to increase trade and influence. Mr Kenyatta, who is touting his development record as he seeks a second term in August’s election, said the railway line heralded a new chapter in Kenya’s history:

“A history that was first started 122 years ago when the British, who had colonised this nation, kicked off the train to nowhere… it was then dubbed the ‘Lunatic Express’.”

“Today… despite again a lot of criticism we now celebrate not the ‘Lunatic Express’ but the Madaraka [named after the day Kenya’s attained internal self-rule) Express that would begin to reshape the story of Kenya for the next 100 years.”
• Funding for the 470km (290 miles) project was provided by China
• It took three-and-a-half years to build, using Chinese track-laying technology
• The line is supposed to eventually connect land-locked South Sudan, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Burundi and Ethiopia to the Indian Ocean
• Cuts the journey-time from Mombasa to Nairobi to four-and-a-half hours, compared to nine hours by bus or 12 hours on the previous railway
• An economy class ticket will cost 900 Kenyan shillings ($9; £7), slightly cheaper than a bus ticket.
Kenya opens the Mombasa–Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway, the East African country's largest infrastructure project since gaining independence.