Kenya has moved to fix the challenges that had threatened to stall the Sh6.9 billion Inland Container Depot (ICD) at Naivasha.
This
comes days after Kampala protested the move by Nairobi to direct all
transit cargo destined for Uganda — Kenya’s biggest trade partner — to
be cleared at the Naivasha ICD from June 1.
Transport
Cabinet Secretary James Macharia, who toured the facility Tuesday, said
the government had dealt with most of the sticky issues raised by
various partners and customers and it is now ready for operations.
Since
last week, the minister has been wooing the neighbouring countries to
use the Sh6.9 billion facility by listing the benefits.
In a four-page letter last week, for example, Mr Macharia explained the gains to his Ugandan counterpart.
Uganda
had argued that the use of the Naivasha ICD should be optional. Kampala
is a major user of the port of Mombasa, accounting for up to a quarter
of the cargo that passes through the facility.
At the
same, the Shippers Council has weighed in on the subject, saying the
government should not make it compulsory for port users to use the ICD.
“The
government should allow choices as much as it should encourage the use
of railway. At the end of the day shippers make decisions on the mode
they would want to use basing it on cost and efficiency,” said Gilbert
Langat, the CEO of the council.
On Tuesday, Mr Macharia
said Kenya Railways was putting up a marshalling yard to help deal with
parking challenges for the transit vehicles.
He
also said he had held a virtual meeting with his colleagues in Rwanda,
Uganda and South Sudan to iron out the other challenges especially those
resulting from the Covid-19 testing protocols.
“The
Naivasha ICD is ready and it is so important for the country and the
region especially at this time when we are dealing with the Covid-19
pandemic,” he said.
“The transport corridors have been
the main transmission corridors for Covid-19 and this ICD will reduce
the risk on the road by about 600km, which translates to 50 per cent of
the risk,” Macharia said.
Kenya has also given her
neighbours 10-acre pieces of land at the ICD to build warehouses as well
as a 30-day free storage period.
DN body text: Mr
Macharia said using the ICD would also be cheaper by about Sh45,000
($450) per container compared to the roads.
On December
17 last year, President Uhuru Kenyatta launched the extended standard
gauge railway (SGR) freight services from Mombasa to the Naivasha ICD,
promising faster transportation of cargo to western Kenya and on to
neighbouring countries.
The issue was agreed upon by the four Presidents from the East African Community last month during a virtual meeting.
The
ICD would also help decongest the roads, reduce the number of
accidents, as well as cut the amount of time it takes to transport cargo
from Mombasa.
Kenya is counting on the creation of the
economic zone on the remainder of the 1,000 acres the ICD is sitting on
to create jobs and spur economic activity.
But making the ICD compulsory for clearance appears to have been the deal breaker.
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