The government has officially begun stakeholder consultations ahead of the construction works of the Nairobi-Nakuru-Mau Summit Highway expansion project.
Transport Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir announced on Monday, August 18, that stakeholder engagement was underway for one of the country's most ambitious infrastructure ventures in recent years.
The stakeholder engagement exercise is specifically designed to incorporate public input and promote transparency in the development of the 175-kilometre highway.
"This event marks not only the beginning of a critical engagement process but also a crucial step in the journey of delivering one of the most transformative road projects in our nation's recent history," Chirchir said in a statement.
While citing Article 10 of the Constitution, which outlines national values and principles of governance, including public participation, Chirchir noted that engaging stakeholders was a key component in reinforcing inclusive development.
"The government has pledged to maintain transparency throughout the PPP process, including publishing disclosures from proposal receipt to project development stages," the CS added.
The road is part of the larger A8 corridor connecting Nairobi to Western Kenya and forms a critical section of the Northern Corridor, which serves landlocked countries including Uganda, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Being one of the busiest and most economically significant trade routes in the region, the government decided to facilitate the project through a PPP arrangement, similar to the Nairobi Expressway model.
As a result, the private sector is expected to provide both technical expertise and funding. It is anticipated that tolling will recover the investment because the project will be financed by private stakeholders.
Chirchir stated after the stakeholder engagement that the project, which is expected to take 24 months to complete, would generate jobs in both the formal and informal sectors.
Originally, the government had signed a Ksh190 billion contract earlier this year to hire a French consortium. An availability-based payment clause in the original agreement would have required the government to make up revenue shortfalls for over ten years.
However, the National Treasury declared the terms of the agreement to be financially unsustainable, which resulted in its cancellation.
Since then, two Chinese companies have taken the lead in the competition for the contract.
The dual carriageway is expected to ease the strain on the current infrastructure by improving freight movement along the corridor, cutting down on travel times and improving road safety once it is finished.
