The Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) has received financing from the African Development Bank (AfDB) for the construction of the multinational South Sudan Road Corridor.
In a notice published on Tuesday, March 12, KeNHA announced that the funds would be used to upgrade the Lesseru-Kitale and Morpus-Lokichar road sections.
The 193-kilometre road corridor connects Kenya and South Sudan across the Great Rift Valley, running from Lesseru to Nadapal and Kapoeta, and finally to Juba in South Sudan.
"The Government of the Republic of Kenya has received financing from the African Development Bank and African Development Fund to finance the Multinational: Kenya South Sudan Road Corridor Lesseru-Kitale and Morpus-Lokichar Road Upgrading Project Phase 1," KeNHA stated.
"The Project Road, Lesseru Kitale and Morpus Lokichar Road Sections form part of the Lesseru - Nadapal-Kapoeta Juba corridor located in the North-Western region of Kenya," it added.
According to the Authority, the project is aimed at improving transport connectivity between Kenya and South Sudan, thereby deepening regional integration and trade.
Documents by the Global Centre on Adaptation obtained by Kenyans.co.ke showed that the African Development Bank disbursed Ksh28.8 billion for the road project.
Details of the project first came to light in August 2023, when stakeholders, including the African Development Bank, KeNHA, the Kenya Meteorological Department, and the Kenya Forest Service (KFS), met to discuss its implementation.
The road upgrade will include civil works for the construction of a single-carriageway road approximately seven metres wide, along with the recarpeting of the highway with bitumen.
Additionally, the civil works will involve the construction of service roads, town loop roads, and access roads, as well as the development of selected socio-economic infrastructure.
The Kenya-South Sudan road project comes barely a month after KeNHA announced that it had received Ksh96 billion from the World Bank for the construction of the Isiolo-Madera highway.
In a notice published on February 18, KeNHA disclosed that the road would traverse from Isiolo town in Isiolo County through Meru County, Wajir County, and finally to Mandera County.
The funding by the World Bank was part of the Project Development Objective (PDO) of the Horn of Africa Gateway Development Project (HoAGDP) aimed at improving intercounty trade activities.
