The government has revoked plans to construct the proposed Nairobi-Mombasa (Usahihi) Expressway, a 459-kilometre mega infrastructure project that was to link Mlolongo in Machakos County to Bonje in Mombasa County.
In a statement, the Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) announced that the Privately Initiated Proposal (PIP), which was to be developed under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model, failed to meet the necessary criteria after evaluation by the Public-Private Partnerships Committee at the National Treasury and Economic Planning.
“Following the submission of the report to the PPP Committee, the proposal was found to have not met the relevant criteria and should be abandoned,” KeNHA said.
The committee advised the contractor to restructure the project, recommending expansion of the existing A8 highway instead of building an entirely new expressway. Once restructured, the proposal could be resubmitted for fresh determination in line with Section 43(12) of the PPP Act, 2021.
Initially unveiled in 2022, the expressway was expected to take a maximum of five years to complete. It was to be a toll road, allowing the investor to recoup construction costs through fees charged to motorists.
The contract had been awarded to Korean Overseas Infrastructure and Development Corporation (KIND) after U.S. firm Bechtel Engineering declined to proceed with the project due to disagreements over the financing model. Bechtel had preferred full government funding, while the State opted for a PPP arrangement.
The project had been billed as a game-changer for Kenya’s transport network, promising reduced travel times between Nairobi and Mombasa and improved logistics efficiency for goods moving to and from the port. However, concerns over cost, feasibility, and alignment with existing infrastructure appear to have influenced the decision to halt it.
The government’s shift towards upgrading the existing A8 highway signals a more cost-conscious approach to infrastructure development. The fate of the Nairobi-Mombasa expressway now depends on whether a viable, restructured proposal can be submitted and approved in the coming months.
