, The LAPSSET (Lamu Port South Sudan Ethiopian Transport) is among the top Infrastructure Projects championed under the African Union’s Presidential Infrastructure Championship Initiative (PICI) and is being managed by the LAPSSET Corridor Development Authority.
The project is the single biggest infrastructure project initiated by the Government of Kenya and is meant to provide seamless connectivity in a region hitherto neglected.
The project comprises of seven core infrastructure components including Lamu Port, a Standard Gauge Railway, a highway connecting Kenya, South Sudan and Ethiopia, crude oil pipeline, international airports and resort cities. In addition to the core projects, the LAPPSSET infrastructure corridor as conceptualized is expected to host all transmissions of telecommunication (fiber optic cables), electricity and water. A high grand fall multipurpose dam is part of the integrated plan
The LAPSSET Project was awarded with the “Global Infrastructure Leadership Project – Job/Opportunity Creation Project of the Year Award,” during the 9th Global Infrastructure Leadership Forum held at Renaissance downtown, Washington DC. According to the LAPSSET Authority, LAPSSET Corridor Project has already created over 5100 jobs since inception.
It was also awarded the “African Investor (AI) Award of the year 2016 for the Regional Infrastructure Investment Initiative” during the AI CEO Infrastructure and Sovereign Wealth Fund Investment Summit & Awards 2016, held in Johannesburg, South Africa.
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- The Port Plaza which has a new police station. When completed, the Lamu Port will have 32 berths. The construction of the 1st three berths is ongoing with delivery times of 24 months of the 1st berth and 45 months for the next two at a cost of $44M. The Government is structuring the remaining 29 berths to be concessioned to the private sector for construction and operations.
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- The highway project runs from Lamu Port through Garissa-Isiolo to Moyale to connect Kenya with Ethiopia and from Isiolo through Lodwar to Nakodok to connect Kenya with South Sudan. The 1566KM Isiolo-Moyale-Addis Ababa section is 85% complete and will be fully completed by December 2016. The Isiolo-Moyale A2 Road (508km) on the Kenyan side of the corridor and Moyale – Hawassa Road (495) on the Ethiopian side will cut travel time from 3 days to about 10 hours.
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- With a one million litres per hour flow rate, the new line will remove about 700 trucks from the roads daily at maximum utilization/FILE PHOTO
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- The Isiolo Airport is one of three international airports planned under the LAPSSET Infrastructure Projects. The international Airport operated by private sector under PPP on concession basis.
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- Construction of immediate Airport facilities is at an advanced stage in Lamu and Isiolo Airports while Turkana Airport is at the design stage.
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- Isiolo Airport Completed Runway
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- Lamu Power Sub Station. The Lamu Port at Manda bay includes Port headquarters, Port Police Station, Electric Power Connection to the National Grid and Water Reticulation Network. Construction of the Port Management Housing Scheme is also ongoing.
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- The preliminary designs for the railway project are complete for the Kenyan and Ethiopian route and expected to proceed to the Detailed Engineering Design stage.
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- The Lamu Manda Island Airport runway has been extended from 1.1km to 2.3 kms.
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- In addition to the core projects, the LAPPSSET infrastructure corridor as conceptualized is expected to host all transmissions of telecommunication (fiber optic cables), electricity and water.
The ongoing project works in roads, port, oil upstream activities, and electric power supply among others have opened up northern Kenya and created access and opportunities to over one million people.
