Time flies with great content! Renew in to keep enjoying all our premium content.
Prime
Cargo volumes at Kisumu port surge by 49pc on upgraded feeder units
MV Kabaka Mutebi II, the maiden fuel cargo from the Port of Kisumu, Kenya, arrives in Entebbe, Uganda with 4.5 million litres of fuel on December 30, 2022. PHOTO | STEPHEN OTAGE | NMG
Cargo throughput at the Kisumu port jumped by nearly half last year, data from the gateway's manager, Kenya Ports Authority (KPA), showed.
The statistics show that the port handled 496,516 tonnes of cargo in 2025, up from 333,431 tonnes the previous year, marking a growth of 49.91 percent.
Kisumu Port Cargo Services Manager Patrick Makau attributed the growth to increased waterways business between Kenya and other East African Community countries.
“With sustained investment and stronger partnerships, this port will redefine lake trade. The surge in exports to our neighbours is clear proof that Kisumu is rising again as we begin to unlock Kisumu’s full potential," he said.
Kisumu port, which is a critical hub for trade with countries such as Tanzania and Uganda, and by extension Rwanda and Burundi, as well as those in the Great Lakes Region, has undergone major upgrades since 2019.
The upgrade has included concreting the port yard, construction of the quayside, repairs of the linkspan, revamping the dry dock, and rehabilitation of all buildings to boost efficiency.
Upgraded facilities have improved performance of the port, which had for close to three decades been hit by a dilapidated railway infrastructure and impassable and persistent invasion of water hyacinth as well as boundary disputes that have turned the freshwater lake into a liability.
Five small ports in Lake Victoria are also set for an upgrade to support operations of the newly revamped main Kisumu port as part of a plan to grow East Africa trade.
KPA and Trade Mark East Africa are upgrading Sio Pier, Port Victoria, Asembo Bay, Kendu Bay, and Homa Bay satellite ports to spur trade within the water body.
Rehabilitated landing sites are expected to serve locals by enabling transport between Kisumu port and these small ports on the lake through use of small roll-on, roll-off vessels or barges. These vessels are primarily designed to carry wheeled cargo, such as cars, motorcycles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, and buses.
Currently, communities on the shores of Lake Victoria are primarily served by road, sometimes travelling over long distances that could easily be covered by Lake Victoria.
Kisumu port is also expected to benefit from the planned construction of a 263.7-kilometre standard gauge railway line from Naivasha to Kisumu. The proposed SGR Phase 2B project will involve a line from the terminus of the Nairobi–Naivasha SGR and pass through Narok, Bomet, Sotik, Sondu, and Ahero then Kisumu.
A plan by KRC shows that Phase 2B of the SGR project will include modifications of the Kisumu port, including an 8 kilometre branch line.
It will also entail the construction of two multi-purpose berths (and associated facilities) and workboat berths so as to accommodate the safe lying of ships.
