Plans to build an expressway connecting Kenya and Uganda received a nod after African Development Bank released Ksh175 million for feasibility study.
In a statement dated Monday October 30, the East African Community confirmed receiving the funds from the regional bank.
According to EAC the funds will help for a feasibility study on building a four-lane expressway from Kisumu to Uganda through Busia.
“The objective is to determine the economic viability of upgrading the existing multinational road sections from single carriageway to express way standards, ” the statement read in part.
The funds from the African Development Bank (AfDB) will be used to assess the viability of the 256km road that will terminate in Kakira—a town in Uganda’s border district of Jinja.
The road is part of improvements on the Northern Corridor, a key trader route in East Africa providing landlocked countries like Uganda with faster access to the port of Mombasa.
The 104km four-lane stretch will run from Kisian in Kisumu to Busia border town. The project will see the construction of an 11km link road between Kisian and Kisumu bypass.
Another 127 km will be built between Jinja and Malaba, which will be connected to a 20km stretch that will run along the border to Busia.
The high-speed highway will be the continuation of the $1.48 billion Kampala-Jinja expressway, which is expected to be completed by 2025.
The road is expected to further open up the region spurring economic growth.
