Kenya, Japan revive construction of Mombasa Gateway Bridge
The Mombasa Gateway Bridge, funded by a Sh47 billion loan from Japan, was initially slated for June 2021 with a 2024 completion date.
Kenya and Japan are planning to construct the longest bridge in Africa, Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen said Wednesday, noting it will ease transport and boost tourism.
Murkomen made the announcement following talks with Kobuka Konosuke, Japan's Minister for Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.
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They discussed development projects the two countries were working on, including the Mombasa Port Area Roads Development Project (MPARD) and the Mombasa Gateway Bridge.
"Japan is involved in new major projects such as the Mombasa Gateway Bridge, which will be the longest in Africa,” CS Murkomen said.
"It will not only ease the movement of people and goods between the island and the South Coast but will also be a tourist attraction."
Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen and Kobuka Konosuke, Japan's Minister for Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism sign an agreement following their signing of an agreement during the Kenya-Japan Quality Infrastructure Conference on January 12, 2024. (Photo: X/Kipchumba Murkomen)
The two ministers endorsed the text of a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) on Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) in the transport sector, establishing how the two countries will work together to promote PPPs in Kenya.
Also in the meeting were parties including Japan's Ambassador to Kenya, Okaniwa Ken, Japan International Cooperation Agency Chief Representative Shinkawa Makoto and representatives of several companies from Japan.
The meeting was on the sidelines of the Kenya-Japan Quality Infrastructure Conference, which aims to strengthen partnerships between the two countries' public and private sectors. It further explores new infrastructure opportunities using the PPPs model.
Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen and Kobuka Konosuke, Japan's Minister for Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism sign an agreement following their signing of an agreement during the Kenya-Japan Quality Infrastructure Conference on January 12, 2024. (Photo: X/Kipchumba Murkomen)
The CS noted that Kenya and Japan have had an enduring six-decade relationship and have collaborated on projects such as Ngong Road’s upgrading and the building of bridges in Mombasa and Kilifi counties.
"Japan's quality infrastructure projects align with our constitutional imperative of intergenerational equity," Murkomen noted.
The Mombasa Gateway Bridge, funded by a Sh47 billion loan from Japan, was initially slated for June 2021 with a 2024 completion date.
It was earlier delayed by factors including compensating 1,706 families whose 62.6 hectares of land, primarily in Likoni and Shika Adabu.
Approximately Sh9.4 billion will be allocated to the compensation of the people including 500 fishing-dependent families.
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