Mtwapa-Kwa Kadzengo-Kilifi Road in Coastal Kenya

The 40.4-kilometer Mtwapa-Kwa Kadzengo-Kilifi Road, which President William Ruto launched on November 19, 2022, is steadily starting to take shape.

The contractor has already completed constructing a seven-kilometer radius around the Vipingo location. The statement was made recently by the Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA).

It is said that the actual construction of the road is currently at 10%. This is according to KeNHA Engineer Ezekiel Fukwo. He is the Director of Highways, Designs, Safety, and Environment.

According to Fukwo, there are currently seven kilometers in use. The contractors have indeed mobilized and are performing excellently. Additionally, they anticipate that more work will be seen as time goes by, and they hope the project will be completed quickly.

The Mtwapa-Kwa-Kadzengo-Kilifi road is part of a 454-kilometer transnational road. The road connects Bagamoyo in neighboring Tanzania with Malindi town in Kenya.

The African Development Bank (AfDB), the EU-African Infrastructure Trust Fund Grant, and the Kenyan government are working together to fund the Malindi-Lunga Lunga/Horohoro-Tanga-Bagamoyo East African Coastal Road Corridor. The road will cost approximately Sh7.5 billion to construct.

President William Ruto stated in November last year that Kenya’s infrastructure developments were crucial. According to him, it will strengthen the economies as well as trade between the two countries.

7.4 kilometers of the Mtwapa-Kwa Kadzengo-Kilifi Road will be dual, and the other 33 kilometers will be single lanes that have been expanded.

Completion dates for the construction of the Mtwapa—Kwa Kadzengo—Kilifi Road project

It is said that the project is expected to be concluded in December 2024. The road’s design calls for the clearing of at least 5,000 trees to make room for its construction. KeNHA recently began replacing trees along the seven-kilometer section of the road that has already been completed.

To plant the trees along the road, KeNHA has also collaborated with various stakeholders, including Mombasa Cement, Rea Vipingo, Superior Homes, Kenya Forest Services, the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), and the Kilifi County Government.

According to Fukwo, KeNHA plans to plant 20,000 trees along the Mtwapa-Kwa Kadzengo–Kilifi Road. Moreover, he said, KeNHA is devoted to environmental stewardship and is following President Ruto’s directive for the country to plant 15 billion trees over the course of the next ten years.

Reported earlier

August 2021

Dualling of Nyali-Kilifi road in Kenya to begin in January 2022

The dualling of the Nyali-Kilifi road in Kenya is set to commence next year in January. Chairman of the Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) Wangai Ndirangu announced the plans and said the project will be done in two phases.

The Nyali-Kilifi road project is part of the government’s objective to expand road connectivity in the coastal region. The 55km road project will be from Nyali Bridge in Mombasa to Kilifi. The first phase of the project will be a 14 km section from the Nyali Bridge to Mtwapa excluding the bridge, and the second phase will be from Mtwapa to Kwa-Kadzengo in Kilifi.

The project also includes bypasses and interchanges at areas such as Bamburi and Nyali. Unlike in the first phase of the Nyali-Kilifi dualling project, the second stage of dualling will only be done for the first 7km then afterward it will be revered a single carriageway.

Rehabilitation of slopes

“We only have an option of widening the single carriageway because right now we don’t even have shoulders on that road and we have motorcycles, bicycles, and even pedestrians all trying to compete for that narrow carriageway,” said Eng. Ndirangu.

The road project is set to cost US $182M. Meanwhile, rehabilitation of the slopes of the section of the ring road south of Mombasa, recently destroyed by a landslide, will be completed by the end of September.

The slopes were crushed by a series of landslides caused by accumulated water flowing from the Moi International Airport through underground tunnels. Several interventions, including piling works, drainage works, and gabion works have been initiated to restore and stabilize the slopes at a cost of US $3M.

Feb 2022

Mtwapa-Kilifi Road Dualization Project Kenya: Documentation Processes Begins

The national government of Kenya has begun the documentation processes for the dualization project of the 40 plus Kilometer Mtwapa-Kilifi Road, which is a part of the 460 kilometers Malindi-Tanga-Bagamoyo East African corridor or rather Coastline Transnational Highway development project.

Also Read: Kinango-Kwale Road construction in Kenya begins

The road starts at the beginning of the proposed New Mtwapa Bridge next to Mtwapa Town and runs in a northerly direction through Mtwapa Town, Majengo, Kwa Kadzengo, Kijipwa, Shariani, Takaungu, and Mavueni before terminating before the start of Kilifi Bridge.

Scope of the works

The scope of the work includes the construction of a 7.3 km dual carriageway consisting of four lanes & service lanes on both sides, the construction of a three-span 220M  dual carriageway bridge, and the upgrading of the existing 33.1 km Road Section.

It also includes the construction of grade-separated junctions, major and minor drainage structures, access roads, and social amenities along the road. The pavement structure shall comprise asphalt concrete surfacing, dense bitumen macadam base, cement improved Graded Crushed Stone (GCS) sub-base, and natural material improved subgrade.

A single seal surface treatment shall be carried out on the main carriageway, shoulders, junctions, and accesses a transnational highway between Kenya and Tanzania.

Funding and expectations for the Mtwapa-Kilifi road dualization project

The project, the cost of which is approximately US$ 367M, is partly funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB), and the European Union. In 2020, the multilateral development finance institution approved a US$ 38.4M financing package for the project while the political and economic union contributed a grant of US$ 29M.

Once completed, the government of the East African country expects the project to create demand for hospitality facilities (hotel and accommodation) at the border entry points to cater to travelers who might need Motels and other accommodation facilities along the way.

It is also expected to promote property values in the Mtwapa and Kilifi regions, which are attributed to increased demand and ease of accessibility, and support inter-country trade between Kenya and Tanzania by promoting transport ease.