Upgrade work is now underway on the B9 Isiolo to Mandera route connecting Kenya with neighbouring Somalia and Ethiopia.
This 748km stretch of road will benefit from a new asphalt surface. The project is intended to help boost stability in the region, which has suffered from poor infrastructure and has been subject to attacks by rebel groups. The 1,200km journey from Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, to Mandera has typically taken two days by bus in good weather. However by improving the surface along the B9, the journey times will be reduced considerably. Mandera sits on the border with Somalia and Ethiopia, in Kenya’s north east, and upgrading the B9 will improve transport. However the road links in both Somalia and this area of Ethiopia are extremely basic, so barriers will remain to cross-border traffic.
