• Omwono asked contractors to fast track construction works of all roads, bridges and highway projects and complete them within the specified timeframe.
• Omwono said roads and bridges are being constructed to provide easy connectivity and cover the infrastructure deficit in the region.
Image: FILE
Construction of multibillion-shilling infrastructure projects in different parts of Mombasa and Kwale counties is progressing steadily, a roads agency has said.
Kenya National Highways Authority director general Eng Simon Omwono said all contractors awarded road and bridge construction in the region were on site working to meet the deadline.
He asked contractors to fast track construction works of all roads, bridges and highway projects and complete them within the specified timeframe.
Omwono said among them were the Sh22 billion Dongo Kundu Bypass Highway, also known as Mombasa Southern Bypass, and the Sh4.5 billion Makupa Bridge.
The Kenha official said the projects were a game-changer as they would go a long way in solving some of the socio-economic problems faced by Coast residents.
Omwono said roads and bridges are being constructed to provide easy connectivity and cover the infrastructure deficit in the region.
“Infrastructure is the bedrock of socio-economic development in any country and that is what these two particular mega ongoing projects exemplify,” he said.
Omwono said he is satisfied with the quality of work done so far, adding that the government is committed to ensure the completion of the projects in the coastal region.
He said Makupa Bridge contractor China Communications and Construction Co. Ltd and the contractor of phase two Dongo Kundu Bypass, a Japanese consortium, Fujita Corporation-Mitsubishi Corporation, were accelerating work on site to complete the projects.
The Dongo Kundu Bypass is an important transport corridor for traffic destined to and from Tanzania and to and from the interior of Kenya and beyond.
The bypass will decongest Mombasa Island and four bridges will be built in the swamps and across the open ocean water, as part of the highway.
He said the 8.96km dual carriageway project involves the construction of an interchange at the Likoni-Lunga Lunga highway and erection of two bridges, one in Mwache–spanning 660 metres, and another in Mteza of 1,440 metres.
The Kenha director general said the 457m long Makupa Bridge will replace the historic Makupa causeway that links Mombasa Island to the mainland.
The 120 metres Makupa causeway structure between Tudor and Port Reitz creeks was built in the 1920s by the British colonial government and has reportedly been interfering with natural oceanic waves and the free flow of aqueous oxygen.
It has also been a cause of damage to fish breeding grounds, besides causing pollution.
Omwono said the Makupa Bridge will help end delays, reduce accidents and restore the status of Mombasa as a full island city.
“Inland bound traffic of the Makupa Bridge is open but outbound traffic is yet to be opened because the approach roads are still ongoing,” he said.
Omwono urged the contractor to complete the remaining work at a faster pace while maintaining quality.
The Kenha boss spoke when he inspected the projects. He was accompanied by Coast regional commissioner John Elungata and Coast region Presidential Delivery Unit director Polycarp Onyango.
He said the projects will lower the cost of doing business in the region by lowering vehicle operating costs, reducing travel time and improving mobility.
Dongo Kundu project resident engineer Moses Mwakira said the construction of the projects will make the region and the country a hub of transportation.
He said the Dongo Kundu Bypass project is 53 per cent complete and is expected to be operational in 2024.
Mwakira said the bypass will provide alternative routes to the South Coast, reducing Likoni ferry congestion.
Elungata said they will facilitate trade and movement to and from neighbouring Tanzania via Kwale hence fostering regional cooperation.
He said the Dongo Kundu Bypass is seen as the solution to congestion at Likoni Ferry, which is blamed for the slow growth of the South Coast region.
“Once phase two of the bypass is complete it will connect the West mainland to the South Coast through Tsunza and open all the hinterland in Kwale county while reducing traffic at Likoni crossing channel,” Elungata said.
He said the projects have raised demand for construction materials and created thousands of jobs for locals.
Elungata said President Uhuru Kenyatta’s government has a policy of ‘leaving no one and no place behind’ in terms of development.
He said the Dongo Kundu project comes with special economic zones, which will start a chain of events that are expected to make Mombasa a regional logistics and manufacturing hub.
“The Special Economic Zone Development project at Dongo Kundu is one of the Vision 2030 flagship projects in the region,” he said.
A free trade zone, the Dongo Kundu Free Trade Zone, with 6,200 sites with the ability to accommodate more than 10,000 business units is part of the planned development.