The African Development Bank (AfDB) said Thursday it has approved 123 million U.S. dollar loan for a key highway upgrading project in Kenya’s coastal region to facilitate regional integration in East Africa. 
A statement from the AfDB received here said the African Development Fund (ADF) loan is for the Mombasa-Mariakani road project and will reduce import/export costs, thus improving the region’s global competitiveness
“The project consists of the dualization of a 41.7-kilometer stretch of the Mombasa-Mariakani Highway with flyovers, bus bays, service roads, truck parking, pedestrian foot bridges, walkways, street lighting and associated soft components,” it said.
The road project is a key import/export gateway and an important section of the Northern Corridor (NC), which links the port of Mombasa in Kenya with the land-linked eastern and central African countries of Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
With increasingly constrained capacity due to traffic volumes largely dominated by heavy trucks, the road experiences persistent congestion that hinders access to the main sea port of Mombasa.
The project will be co-financed by KfW of Germany, European Investment Bank and the Africa Infrastructure Trust Fund.
“Efficient transportation and movement of people and goods resulting from the intervention will spur economic development in the area and beyond,” AfDB said.
The Bank said the road project will also improve port efficiency, and complements the Bank’s past operations in Kenya, in particular, and the region at large. Enditem
Source: Xinhua
