A section of a superhighway
The construction of the 460km transnational highway between Kenya and Tanzania is set to begin early next year after the African Development Bank (AfDB) announced that the funding for the road will be approved in September this year.
The construction cost for the highway is approximately $751 million (Sh75.1 billion).
The transnational highway is among the infrastructure projects being prioritized by the East African Community.
AfDB will finance 70% of the coastal highway while the governments of Kenya and Tanzania will cover the remaining 30 percent.
Route map of the upcoming superhighway
The 460 km road consists of 250 km on Kenya’s side and the rest on the Tanzanian portion and is expected to improve cross-border trade, tourism, socio-economic development and promote regional integration.
It will run through Malindi, Mombasa and Lunga Lunga on the Kenyan side and Horohoro, Tanga and Bagamoyo on the Tanzanian side.
Speaking during the Kenya roadshow for the upcoming second edition of the Africa Investment Forum, Gabriel Negatu, East Africa Director General of AfDB added that the both the Kenya and Tanzania governments had finalized plans to pave the way for the construction of the coastal highway.
President Uhuru Kenyatta with his Tanzanian counterpart John Magufuli
The deal to construct the roads was sealed in 2016, and both Presidents agreed to construct the road to ease movements of goods and subsequently develop the economy of the two nations.
In a previous announcement in December 2018, Negatu indicated that construction work would start in early 2019.
However, in this latest announcement Negatu explained that both the Kenyan and the Tanzanian governments have finalized all their requirements to pave way for the construction works.
The highway is also expected to ease the movement of traffic from both Mombasa and Tanga ports, destined to neighboring land-locked countries Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, and DR Congo.