ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a conceptual framework by coupling governance and infrastructure in order to explore the measures required to assess railway competitive functions that can have a determining impact on stimulating resilience. The establishment of synergies between different modes is critical to the resilience of railways. Railway challenges at different geographical scales, global, continental, national and regional, can be illustrated with selected case studies. A global approach to railway resilience suggests an understanding of supply chain. The successful integration of Africa within global supply chains will increasingly depend on the growing market share of the railway system and an efficient intermodal transport system. The global reach of supply chains illustrates the critical function of railways in providing transportation services beyond maritime ranges. The resilience framework should be global in scope, encompass both internal and external risks with a view to develop a vast portfolio of capacities in a cost competitive way.
