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On Thursday, President William Ruto highlighted transport infrastructure as a key component of his administration’s long-term economic development strategy, introducing an extensive plan to double 2,500 kilometers of major highways and pave 28,000 kilometers of roads within a decade.

In his State of the Nation Address delivered to a joint session of Parliament, Ruto described the significant growth as crucial for Kenya to align with the level and aspirations of the Asian Tigers, nations that lifted themselves out of poverty via strong public investment and focused national strategy.

“The Ministry of Roads and Transport has already planned a detailed network of 2,500 kilometers of highway for dualization and 28,000 kilometers of road to be asphalted over the next decade,” he stated.

History shows that countries grow due to the power of transportation and supply chain management.

Ruto stated that dual carriageways will be implemented throughout the nation’s most congested and economically significant routes, alleviating traffic jams, lowering transportation expenses, and connecting Kenya’s regions to international markets.

On Friday, he is set to commence the dualization of the 170-kilometre Rironi-Nakuru-Mau Summit highway and will also officially start construction on the 58-kilometre Rironi-Mai Mahiu-Naivasha road, both of which he mentioned have faced severe traffic congestion for a long time.

Other significant routes planned for dualling are Mau Summit-Molo-Kericho-Kisumu, Eldoret-Malaba, Athi River-Namanga, Karatina-Nanyuki, Makutano-Embu-Meru, Malindi-Mombasa-Lunga Lunga, Kericho-Kisii-Migori-Isebania, and Nakuru-Nyahururu-Karatina-Kiganjo-Nanyuki, while urban growth areas will include Ngong Road, Bulbul-Kiserian, Kikuyu Bypass, and other local neighborhood roads.

Rail and power projects

He also stated that the Standard Gauge Railway expansion from Naivasha to Kisumu and ultimately Malaba will start in January, as part of a comprehensive multi-modal transport upgrade aimed at solidifying Kenya’s position as the region’s logistics center.

“Effective transportation and logistics form the foundation of our competitive edge. They speed up national progress, link products to markets, transport goods and services, reduce business costs, and strengthen Kenya’s position as the air and commercial hub of East and Central Africa,” Ruto stated.

The ambitious transportation and logistics plan is a key component of Ruto’s four-part national strategy, which also emphasizes the development of human resources, scientific education and innovation, industrial advancement, and agricultural irrigation, along with significant energy production, including an extra 10,000MW in the next seven years.

Recognizing Kenya’s limited financial resources, the President stated that the large-scale road project will be funded in a creative manner—without increasing taxes or resorting to unmanageable debt.

Development financing

The government will create a National Infrastructure Fund, based on the new law governing state-owned enterprises, to utilize allocated funds and proceeds from privatization in order to draw in private investment via public-private partnerships.

“Every shilling invested from the proceeds of privatization, we hope to draw in 10 shillings from long-term investors,” he stated.

Ruto also revealed the establishment of a Sovereign Wealth Fund aimed at investing revenue from natural resources and proceeds from privatization into savings, stability, and commercial infrastructure initiatives.

Comparing Kenya to Japan and South Korea, which he stated achieved success not through miracles but via “discipline, leadership, and targeted investment,” Ruto emphasized that Kenya needs to adopt a long-term vision.

“We must not be content with small advancements. This time calls for rejecting the usual,” he stated.

He claimed that the 28,000-kilometre road initiative, highway dualization, and railway development will serve as the foundation for Kenya’s long-term growth, turning the nation into a strong manufacturing and export center.

These four initiatives represent our country’s top priorities, not because they are simple, but because they are essential. This is the responsibility that falls upon our generation.

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Tagged: Kenya, Governance, Economy, Business and Finance, East Africa

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