Two consultancy firms appointed by the East African Community (EAC) have taken over the site for the planned 256-kilometre four-lane expressway from Kisumu to Uganda via Busia, ready to kick off feasibility studies on the project aimed at boosting regional trade.
The EAC secretariat last week handed the proposed project to Germany’s GOPA Infra Gmbh and its Kenya counterpart ITEC to run a feasibility study.
The road is part of improvements on the northern corridor, a key trade route in East Africa providing landlocked countries like Uganda with faster access to the Mombasa port.
“It is our expectation that partner States are also in the process of upgrading the other sections of the Northern Corridor from Mombasa through Nairobi up to Malaba and from Kampala westwards towards Katuna and Mpondwe so as to achieve a uniform high level of service along the entire corridor,” EAC Deputy Secretary General in charge of Infrastructure, Productive, Social and Political Sectors, Aguer Ariik Malueth, said in a statement.
The roads form part of the Mombasa-Nairobi-Kampala-Kigali expressway that was given high priority at the 4th EAC Heads of States Retreat on Infrastructure Development in February 2018 in Kampala as crucial links in promoting regional integration and easing of access to the sea for landlocked countries.
The rehabilitation along the Northern Corridor is expected to strengthen road infrastructure within the EAC and grow regional integration and trade.
The estimated overall duration of the project is 24 months.
Kenya and Uganda with the support of the EAC, are keen to improve transportation to support economic development within the two partner states, deepen economic co-operation, and foster regional integration.
The EAC Secretariat requested in February 2021 financing by the New Partnership for Africa's Development (Nepad) Infrastructure Project Preparation Facility (IPPF)—Nepad IPPF— Special Fund to carry out feasibility studies for the section of the Northern Corridor from Kisumu to Busia in Kenya and the Kakira to Malaba, including the Busitema-Busia link in Uganda.
The cost of the feasibility study is estimated at $1.49 million (Sh256.4 million) of which $1.39 million (Sh187.69 million) is a grant from the Nepad-IPPF while $100,000 (6.7 percent) will be provided by the EAC.
The IPPF grant will finance the main consultancy services while the counterpart contribution will finance project management and supervision costs.
The project fits within a regional programme in the region and is a priority for respective partner States. It contributes to the delivery of economic infrastructure necessary for achieving tangible development outcomes for the region.
