Construction work on Kenya’s vital Mombasa-Nairobi highway upgrade project is now going ahead as planned. A resolution has been achieved that will solve the funding issues that had threatened to delay the project. The project will cost nearly US$3 billion in all and is crucial for the country’s economic development as it will provide a new four lane highway connecting Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, with its largest port at Mombasa. But there were concerns that the funding method based on a series of loans that was originally proposed would result in Kenya facing large debts. Instead the project is now being carried out under a full PPP model, with US contractor 4138 Bechtel operating the route and collecting tolls.
The highway is of importance not only for Kenya, but for East Africa as a whole. It forms part of a wider plan to improve transport across East Africa and will provide an important route to and from Mombasa for landlocked countries such as neighbouring Uganda.
The highway is of importance not only for Kenya, but for East Africa as a whole. It forms part of a wider plan to improve transport across East Africa and will provide an important route to and from Mombasa for landlocked countries such as neighbouring Uganda.
