Politics and policy
Fire engines at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on August 7, 2013. FILE
By WANGUI MAINA, pmaina@ke.nationmedia.com
In Summary
- The new funding will also go towards construction of the Sh2.37 billion temporary terminal as well as permanent facilities for the international arrivals lounge in Terminal 4 which is currently under construction with the bank’s funding.
The World Bank has approved Sh17.5 billion
funding for emergency reconstruction of Jomo Kenyatta International
Airport’s arrivals hall which was gutted by a fire last August.
The new funding, which was approved on Thursday,
will also go towards construction of the Sh2.37 billion ($27.6 million)
temporary terminal as well as permanent facilities for the international
arrivals lounge in Terminal 4 which is currently under construction
with the bank’s funding.
The fire forced Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) to open a temporary terminal as a stop-gap measure.
“The additional financing will support the
government to restore operations at Kenya’s premier international
airport and also to improve the preparedness of Kenya Airports Authority
to respond to disasters such as last year’s fire emergency,” said the
bank’s country director for Kenya, Diarietou Gaye.
“It will also enable us to complete ongoing
contracts for upgrading of the two major trade and transport corridors
to facilitate regional trade and integration.”
German firm Röder HTS Höcker was awarded the
tender to construct the 2.5 million passenger terminal, which is
expected to be ready in the third quarter of this year. KAA invited bids
for demolish of the razed building as it prepares for reconstruction.
The airport’s management is also looking to extend
Terminal 4 with a new arrivals lounge. Currently, passengers have to
use a converted parking building for arrivals.
Completion of the project will boost JKIA’s
capacity by about four million passengers. Even before the fire, JKIA,
built in the 1970s to handle 2.5 million passengers annually, was
struggling to handle more than six million as its regional importance
grew.
Kenya Airways has blamed lack of capacity for
delays of its own expansion plans. The carrier plans to double its fleet
to more than 80 planes in five years.
“We need to have the right infrastructure in place
as we grow. There is still some work to be done and we are cautiously
optimistic it will be completed on time,” KQ’s chief operating officer
Mbuvi Ngunze said on Wednesday in a press briefing.
In December the government began work on the construction of the Sh56 billion Greenfield Terminal at the JKIA to cement its status as a regional hub. The new terminal will handle 20 million passengers when completed.
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