-Roadside Stations along the Corridor essential in bringing life and support supply Chains in addition to the seamless flow of Cargo from the Lamu Port to the hinterlands;
– Lamu Port and the Local County seeks to attract more Investment at the Sea Port
MAARUFU MOHAMED-GOLFNEWSLINKS;
The Lamu Port South Sudan (LAPSSET) corridor project traverses seven Kenyan Counties from Lamu through Garissa, Meru, Isiolo, Marsabit, Samburu and Turkana.
These Lapsset Counties are critical to the realization of the project that also encompasses construction of highways, resort cities, a railway and airports.
For Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) that manages the Port of Lamu, availability of roadside stations along the corridor like the truck marshalling yards, service centers, ablution rooms and resting places are essential as they will bring the corridor to life and support the supply chains in addition to the seamless flow of cargo from the port to the hinterlands.
This is where the counties come in, with a joint team from KPA led by the General Manager Lamu Port Eng. Vincent Sidai and Lapsset engaging with the leadership of Garissa and Isiolo counties on the need to expedite the development of these amenities.
Currently Garissa County has reserved space for truck parking, marshaling according to the County Secretary Muhamud Mursal with plans for the installation of fiber optics and inland container depots in the works.
Road network is another crucial component that the National Government is implementing to connect the corridor to the regional partners of Ethiopia and South-Sudan.
Meanwhile, Lamu Port and the Local County seeks to attract more Investment at the Sea Port.
This was said when LAPSSET Board Chairman Ali Menza Mbogo together with a delegation from LAPSSET when they paid a courtesy call on the Lamu Governor Issa Timmay to discuss on areas of cooperation and partnership towards realization of the LAPSSET corridor projects in the County.
Among key issues discussed included the cargo evacuation route from Lamu to Moyale and the success story of the arrival of the World Food Programme consignment that was brought by MV Swan from Djibouti.
This has made the port viable to distribute food aid to Ethiopia, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and other East and Central African regions.
Governor Timamy lauded the Lamu port management for having been aptly able to achieve great milestone of a seamless cargo evacuation from the port of Lamu and subsequent transportation through the LAPSSET corridor.
“This is an indication that the grandiose Port of Lamu port is fully open for and will catapult Lamu and Kenya into the league of key global transshipment and commercial maritime hubs, “said Timamy.
Other issues discussed included partnerships and collaborations, harmonizing of planning documents as well as planning on the possibility of holding a major investment conference between LAPSSET and the County Government of Lamu.
LAPSSET remains to be a crucial Kenya Vision 2030 flagship project and is expected to transform regional economies through increased trade, integration and inter-connectivity spanning South Sudan and landlocked Ethiopia.
In attendance was Kenya Vision 2030 Delivery Secretariat Director General Mr. Kenneth Mwige, LAPSSET Director General, Mr. Stephen Ikua, and Lapsset Regional Manager Mr. Salim Bunu among others.
And ICYMI Lamu Port welcomed it’s first-ever ship carrying life-saving food commodities from USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance.
Through World Food Programme, this food aid will be given to people in drought-affected counties of Garissa, Isiolo, Marsabit, Samburu, Turkana and Wajir, as well as those living in Dadaab and Kakuma Refugee Camps.
ENDS;
