Isaka–Kigali Standard Gauge Railway that both countries had agreed to change the railway design to accommodate electric locomotives which are faster than the original diesel-powered equipment. In April 2018, the same newspaper further reported that the World Bank had expressed its willingness to fund this project. In January 2018, the government of Rwanda allocated space in Ndera, approximately , by road, east of Kigali city center, on which the passenger terminal of the SGR will be built. The cargo terminal will be built in Masaka, another neighborhood, approximately , by road, south-east of the central business district of Kigali City. Rwanda has plans to
Kigali three administrative districts—Nyarugenge, which lies in the south west, Kicukiro in the south east, and Gasabo, which occupies the northern half of the city's territory. Kigali lies in a region of rolling hills, with a series of valleys and ridges joined by steep slopes. Kigali lies between the two mountains of Mount Kigali and Mount Jali, both of which have altitudes over , while the lowest areas of the city have an altitude of . Geologically, the city lies in a granitic and metasedimentary region, with lateritic soils on the hills and alluvial soils in the valleys. The Nyabarongo River,