The government has released Sh2 billion to compensate Project-Affected Persons (PAPs) along the Mombasa-Mtwapa-Kilifi (A7) road corridor, clearing a major hurdle that had delayed construction of the 340-metre Mtwapa Bridge and the broader dualling project, Transport Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir has said.
Addressing journalists during a site visit at Mtwapa Bridge, CS Chirchir said the National Land Commission (NLC) was finalising payments to affected traders and property owners, with Sh838 million released to the commission to enable the relocation of businesses within Mtwapa town.
“We have provided all the funding to the National Land Commission, and the commission is in the process of finalising payments. Our money of about Sh838 million was released today to ensure that traders on this corridor, particularly in Mtwapa town, can be relocated,” he said.
The CS noted that PAPs are given 30 days’ notice before any demolition is undertaken, adding that construction through Mtwapa Town to open up the dual carriageway would commence once the notice period lapses.
Chirchir said the Mtwapa-Kilifi section, the second lot of the project, was largely complete, with approximately 7.7 kilometres of dualling finalised on one side. He added that a presidential directive had been issued to extend the dualling to the Export Processing Zone (EPZ) in Vipingo, with design work for that section currently underway.
On the Mombasa-Mtwapa Lot 1 section, covering about 13 kilometres to the bridge, the CS said land acquisition challenges had been resolved, with four of seven major junction bridges already built and open to traffic. Work on the remaining three bridges is ongoing.
“What was a challenge yesterday in the compensation of project-affected persons is not a problem today. We will see accelerated work through the entire corridor and have traffic flowing as it should,” Chirchir said.
To minimize disruption to motorists, the CS said the contractor had been advised to prioritise the Bamburi side of the road, from kilometre zero to four, which falls within a single large land ownership. Opening the service road on that side would allow traffic to be diverted while work continues on the opposite carriageway.
“The plan is to first start on one side, open it to traffic, and then go to the other side. We’ll get the contractor to reduce the pain and do it very quickly,” he said.
The CS acknowledged a pending legal dispute at a section just beyond the bridge, where a hotelier had raised concerns over access to his property, but said efforts were underway to resolve the matter expeditiously.
Chirchir expressed confidence that the entire corridor would be completed within one year, citing the availability of funding from the African Development Bank (ADB) and the resolution of compensation bottlenecks as key enablers.
“With the funding being available now, the whole corridor should really be done in one year,” he said, adding that the government would enhance coordination with the contractor and engineers to meet the set timelines.
He noted that compensation gazettement for all project-affected persons along the corridor had been concluded before the previous NLC commissioners’ term lapsed, and that the outstanding task was reconciling payment records to identify beneficiaries accurately.
By Sitati Reagan
