Coastal residents have been urged to support the National Government’s development agenda aimed at improving livelihoods and infrastructure in the region.
Cabinet Secretaries Hassan Joho (Mining, Blue Economy and Maritime Affairs), Salim Mvurya (Youth Affairs, Creative Economy and Sports) and Senate Speaker, Amason Kingi, are actively urging residents in the coastal region to support the national development agenda.
The leaders said the broad-based government’s development agenda remains on course to deliver tangible results even as the country races towards the high-stake 2027 general elections.
Joho, Mvurya and Kingi are past two-term governors of Mombasa, Kwale and Kilifi counties respectively who served as pioneer county chiefs between 2013 and 2022.
They at the same time called on the people to uphold peace and unity stressing that lasting development can only thrive in a stable and secure environment.
The three leaders have been crisscrossing the coastal counties of Mombasa, Kwale, Kilifi, Lamu, Taita Taveta and Tana River calling on the residents to register in large numbers ahead of the 2027 General Election as doing so will demonstrate the region’s voting strength.
Often accompanied by a retinue of local elected leaders allied to the broad-based government, the three former governors said they will continue holding civic engagement forums in a bid to promote peace and unity before, during and after the 2027 polls.
They said by working together and remaining united, the region can secure even greater opportunities by backing the government’s long-term development agenda under the vision of the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA).
BETA is premised on the pillars of Agricultural Transformation; Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) Economy, Healthcare, Affordable housing and Settlement and Digital Superhighway and Creative economy.
CS Joho said the Kenya Kwanza administration has rolled out numerous projects across key sectors of the economy including agriculture, education, infrastructure and health and sanitation aimed at improving livelihoods.
Joho said while the government has rolled out numerous public projects in the region, their successful completion and impact will depend largely on the cooperation and support of residents.
“During our meet-the-people-tour we are discussing the coast region’s political direction and the importance of voter registration and active participation in elections,” he said.
He urged residents not to gamble with their future in the forthcoming 2027 general polls warning that a wrong electoral decision could set back an entire generation.
He said major infrastructure and economic projects in the coastal region include the Sh32 billion Dongo Kundu Bypass (Mombasa), Sh20 billion Mwache Multipurpose Dam (Kwale), Sh48 billion Lamu port project, the Sh2.6 billion Shimoni fish port project (Kwale), the Sh. 12.5 billion Galana-Kulalu Food Security project (Kilifi) and the proposed Sh455 billion Mombasa-Nairobi expressway.
“All these strategic public investment projects are geared toward transforming regional trade, water security, and transportation,” he said, adding that residents should back the BETA programme that seeks to lower living costs, create jobs, and spur growth from the grassroots level.
Joho said all the infrastructure projects traverse areas where fishing, agriculture, transport and tourism are the main economic activities and expressed optimism that the projects would help create jobs, open up opportunities for traders and boost the local economies.
CS Mvurya on his part urged residents to unite behind the government to enable the full delivery of its mandate. “The political direction of the coast region will not be dictated to us but will be determined by the will of the people who are united by our shared aspirations and common destiny,” he said.
He went further: “We are sensitizing our people on our renewed unity of purpose and collective sense of direction to secure lasting prosperity for our communities since our vote basket matters.” “There are several public infrastructure projects to point to such as roads and ports, ” he said.
He said the government continues to prioritize youth and women empowerment initiatives to create a brighter future for every citizen.
Mvurya cited the Sh5 billion National Youth Opportunities Towards Advancement (NYOTA) project which he noted is a bold intervention that will foster social-economic stability in the long run.
He said the NYOTA project championed by the national government is potentially a ‘panacea to the widespread youth unemployment’ and associated social ills in the country.
CS Mvurya said the government will continue upskilling young people and creating an enabling environment where they can thrive.
Mvurya said President William Ruto and Kenya Kwanza administration has demonstrated that the citizens’ long-standing aspirations can be realized through a deliberate, inclusive, and transformative development agenda.
“President Ruto’s leadership has brought the coast region to the centre of the national development agenda while decisively addressing the historical challenges of marginalization and underdevelopment that have bedeviled our region for decades,” he said.
Speaker Kingi pointed to the completion and ultimate opening of the Ronald Ngala Utalii College which he said will not only boost the tourism sector in the entire coast region but also position the institution as a national center of excellence.
Kingi said the institution will be churning out a pool of skilled professionals in the tourism and hospitality sectors.
“As a region we owe it to ourselves and for posterity to unite regardless of our political affiliations, shun divisive politics, and rally behind the national economic transformation agenda championed by President William Ruto,” said Kingi.
The long-awaited Ronald Ngala Utalii College in Kilifi County, is scheduled to officially open and admit its first cohort of 1,000 students on September 1, 2026. “By undertaking such transformative development projects across the coastal region, the Kenya Kwanza administration is taking deliberate steps to ensure we are at the heart of the country’s development journey,” he said.
By Hussein Abdullahi
