Japan to fund construction of bridge in Mombasa
What you need to know:
- Mr Terada spoke during the signing of a Sh25 billion deal between his country and Kenya for the construction of the second container terminus in Mombasa.
- Finance Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich said the loan marked development of the close bilateral cooperation with the Japanese government and her people.
- KPA Managing Director Mr Gichiri Ndua noted that by the close of business in December last year, the port over one million containers had gone through the port.
The Japanese government will fund construction of a third bridge linking Mombasa Island to South Coast at undisclosed amount.
The bridge will link the island at the Likoni ferry channel.
“We will build the most beautiful bridge in the world with Japanese techniques at the gate of Mombasa in the near future. It will be named Likoni Bridge,” Japanese Ambassador to Kenta Tatsushi Terada said.
Mr Terada spoke during the signing of a Sh25 billion deal between his country and Kenya for the construction of the second container terminus in Mombasa.
“Japan has a long history of cooperation with this port city of Mombasa. The Moi International Airport, the Nyali, Mtwapa, Kilifi and Sabaki bridges are the earlier fruits of our cooperation,” he said.
He said the Japanese government was looking forward to long term cooperation with Kenya and Africa by sharing technology.
“We will continue to assist and share our experiences in order to support the nation building efforts of Kenya and Africa as a whole,” said the ambassador.
Finance Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich said the loan marked development of the close bilateral cooperation with the Japanese government and her people.
“The infrastructure development support Japan has given us has been instrumental in accelerating the economic growth we have achieved so far,” Mr Rotich said.
Kenya has received financial support amounting to Sh443.5 billion from Japan since independence.
Last year, container traffic through the port significantly increased due to growth in trade, economic development of countries served by the port, global growth in containerization, dredging and improved port operations.
KPA Managing Director Mr Gichiri Ndua noted that by the close of business in December last year, the port over one million containers had gone through the port.
“We were at 84 per cent capacity then at the moment. We are currently intending to meet an additional capacity by looking into ways of achieving full capacity by expanding the port,” Mr Ndua said.
