Residents Upbeat as Lamu County Gets its First Tarmac Road, 55 years after Independence

Residents of Lamu now have a reason to smile after the county got its first ever inch of tarmac road, 55 years after the country attained independence.

This comes after the Kenya Urban Roads Authority (Kura) completed the construction of 1.5 kilometers of the 15-kilometre road within Mokowe Town, where the headquarters of the county are located.

The Sh1.1 billion tender to complete project was awarded to Liberty Builders Limited.

“We have completed tarmacking the first 1.5 out of the intended 15 kilometre road. Work is still in progress and we expect the whole project to be complete by November next year,” Kura acting director in-charge of policy strategy and compliance, Mohamed Abdulrashid, said on Wednesday.

The construction commenced in May, 2017, with the project expected to be complete by November, 2019. The 15-kilometre road will link all public facilities within the small town, as well as improve security in the area.

Lamu has for decades complained of marginalization by past regimes, but the construction of Mokowe Road has presented some residents with an opportunity to set foot on a tarmac road for the first time in their lives.

Residents who spoke to the Nation expressed joy and optimism that the constriction of this road will even open more opportunities for them.

Isaack Yunus, a youth leader, said :“The road construction project has created employment opportunities for us. It has generally helped to empower the area residents by improving our living standards in all aspects including access to government services at our county headquarters."

Another resident, Amina Abubakar, an entrepreneur, noted: “Major investments will be attracted to the new urban town with the increased provision of services and infrastructure."

Lamu county Tourism, Trade and Industrialization executive, Dismas Mwasambu, said the road is a game changer for residents. “This is one project that has influenced economic development. We have seen growth in trade and many investors have already been attracted to Mokowe town which borders the Lapsset project...I believe once Kura completes the road project, major activities will be shifted to the Mokowe mainland from Lamu Island,” Mr Mwasambu said.