Feasibility study for Kenya-Uganda expressway project gets underway

The study, funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB), will determine the economic viability of upgrading the existing multinational road sections from a single carriageway to expressway standards.  

It forms part of planned improvements on the Northern Corridor which provides landlocked East African nations such as Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda and the DRC with faster access to Mombasa Port in Kenya. It is also part of the Mombasa-Kigali expressway that was prioritised by the East African Community (EAC) in February 2018. 

The expressway is viewed as a potential game changer for regional logistics and supply chain management. 

Uniform high-quality service along the entire corridor 

Speaking in Kisumu at the site-handover ceremony to the companies that will do the feasibility study – GOPA Infra Gmbh of Germany and ITEC Limited of Kenya – EAC Deputy Secretary General, Aguer Ariik Malueth, said the study will take about 18 months. 

He emphasised the importance of uniform high-quality service along the entire corridor and urged EAC partner states to upgrade other sections of the Northern Corridor to create a comprehensive improvement of the road link. 

“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,” he said. 

The consultants working on the feasibility study are also expected to propose other measures including digitalisation of weighbridges, establishment of roadside rest areas, and intelligent transport systems.