Alfred Mutua launches ambitious city plan

The launch of Machakos City and an investment programme by President Kenyatta on Friday marked the beginning of an ambitious initiative to give the county a new socio-economic face in the next five years.

The programme by Governor Alfred Mutua aims at introducing a modern metropolis to be set on an initial 2,200 acres about three kilometres from Machakos Town.

During the launch, Dr Mutua told local and international investors that the new city would be fully functional in 18 months with its skyline dotted with amazing buildings within four years.

The governor said the proposed city would feature bold, smart buildings that capture the modern trends in a well-planned landscape.

The future of the metropolis is already taking shape in form of a recreational park and an amphitheatre, whose construction is expected to be complete before the Jamhuri Day celebrations next month. The two are overlooking the imposing Maruba Dam, the town’s main source of water.

He describes the amphitheatre as the only one in Africa with a capacity to host more than 5,000 people for concerts and performances. The green park at the proposed site will feature, among others, a miniature golf and a children’s entertainment park.

Dr Mutua has also planned for well-zoned housing complexes and an eight-kilometre track for Formula One car racing.

Already, the governor has come up with a name for the sports tourism he is envisaging—the SimbaFormula One racing. “It will be the only Formula One track in the whole of Africa—racing on the plains where lions used to roam,” he said.

The city will be networked with adequate CCTV coverage and emergency and rescue services.

In the plan is a forensics and research centre, whose set-up is under way.

Already set up within the proposed city area is the Machakos version of Hollywood.

The board of the Machakos Entertainment Centre for Film, Music, Media and the Arts (Machawood) has been set up. The team is said to be working on setting up film and music studios on a 50-acre site.

“Machawood will be a feature in not only promoting the arts, but making Machakos County the centre for filming, music and general entertainment in the region,” Dr Mutua said.

His path to Friday’s ceremony started on May 17, after only two months in office, when he held the first Machakos Investment Conference.

SIGNED AGREEMENTS

In the conference, the county government signed agreements with interested investors in many fields totalling to $23.4 billion (Sh2 trillion).

Dr Mutua’s incentives to investors are among others, the facilitation by his government in helping them acquire approvals and licences to operate.

In this respect, the county will consider firms that prove their financial ability.

Among the incentives is the allotment of free land to investors, which, the governor said, some people find difficult to understand.

“We have decided to use land as a resource to attract investors. All the great new economies of Singapore, United Arab Emirates (especially Dubai, Malaysia, Serbia) have done this to spearhead their development,” he said.