Kisumu governor Prof. Anyang Nyong’o has lauded the national government’s plan to extend the Standard Gauge Railway from Naivasha to Kisumu county.
Nyong’o said the move would enhance connectivity between the Port of Mombasa and Kisumu Port, opening up trade and business opportunities.
The line which is expected to be extended to Malaba on the border of Kenya and Uganda will be a game changer in operations at the revamped Kisumu port creating thousands of job opportunities.
In a speech read on his behalf by County Secretary Hesbon Hongo during Jamhuri Day celebrations in Kisumu, Nyong’o said the route for the SGR line from Duka Moja in Nakuru county to the lakeside city of Kisumu has already been mapped, signifying the government’s commitment to complete the project.
“Last year during Jamhuri Day celebrations I appealed to the national government to consider extending the SGR to Kisumu and I am glad to report that this is going to be done,” he said.
Mamboleo, he said, will host the main terminus in Kisumu with sub stations in Sondu, Ahero, Kodiaga Prisons and Paga beach.
The infrastructure would open up the sleepy towns in the lakeside city with the enhanced connectivity to Nakuru, Nairobi and Mombasa cities opening up trade and business opportunities.
“We are very optimistic that this project will come with huge economic fortunes,” he said.
The Kenya Railways Corporation, national government and county government officials, he added have already embarked on a sensitisation drive for communities living along the mapped areas for the project to prepare them ahead of the commissioning of the line by President Dr. William Ruto.
He added that all the affected people shall be compensated according to the market rate of the land as per the date of the mapping of the route.
“I want to assure all those who will be affected by this project that the national government has put measures in place to ensure that they are compensated accordingly,” he said.
To complement the railways infrastructure, the governor asked the Ministry of Roads and Transport to dual the busy Busia-Ahero highway to facilitate smooth movement of goods from Kisumu to Uganda and vice versa.
The road, which connects Kisumu to Busia Border Post was in dire need of an upgrade, since some of the sections were dilapidated affecting smooth movement of people and goods.
By Chris Mahandara
