UPDATE:Government Spokesperson Cyrus Oguna on Friday, July 23, clarified reports that the country will experience internet interruptions due to the relocation of fibre optic cable.
In his statement, Oguna dismissed the report in a local daily as false and mentioned that although the Ministry of ICT was moving the cable, the internet would not be disrupted.
The Spokesman explained that the Ministry of ICT had engaged KeNHA to properly relocate the internet cable without disruptions.
The Kenyan government, through the Ministry of ICT has warned Kenyans to prepare for internet disruptions over the next six weeks - necessitated by an infrastructural adjustments.
ICT PS Jerome Ochieng stated that the government plans to relocate the internet cables begging the end of this month ahead of the construction of the 234 kilometre highway that will see a dual-carriageway constructed from Rironi to Nakuru and then to Mau Summit.
He added that locals would be given priority in job opportunities during the relocation. The 234 kilometre road construction will see improvement of transport to and from Western and the Rift Valley region of Kenya according to The Standard.
"State Department of ICT and Innovation will undertake the relocation of fibre infrastructure to minimise downtime, it will take up to six weeks and there will be disruptions during the period,” stated ICT Principal Secretary Jerome Ochieng, during a stakeholder meeting on Wednesday, July 21, in Kamandura, Limuru.
“Once the relocation is complete the project will continue to deliver socioeconomic transformation and help develop a huge information highway from the heart of Kenya to the rest of the country,” Ochieng' remarked.
Relocation of the optic cable will be in four lots: Rironi-Naivasha via Mai Mahiu, Rironi-Naivasha, Naivasha-Nakuru and Nakuru-Mau Summit.
The new design will connect to all government sites and institutions along the road as well as to the existing licensed internet service providers and telcos.
The Nairobi-Mau Summit road project is part of the Trans-African Highway—the main transport route serving East and Central African countries from the port of Mombasa.
Kenya last year awarded the highway contract to Rift Valley Highway Limited—a French consortium made up of Vinci Highways SAS, Meridian Infrastructure Africa Fund, and Vinci Concessions SAS.
The project seeks to expand the road into a four-lane dual carriageway through a Public-Private Partnership model.
The consortium is expected to design, finance, construct, operate and maintain the road, recouping their investment through toll charges over 30 years.
The project will also involve widening the existing Rironi–Mai Mahiu–Naivasha road to a seven-metre carriageway with two metre shoulders on both sides.
The contractor will also construct a four-kilometre elevated highway through Nakuru town, build and improve interchanges along the highway.
