- In March this year, the government announced plans to reconstruct and renovate six jetties in the county most of which face closure due to poor maintenance.
- 99 per cent of movement and transport by Lamu residents is also by sea.
Kenya pumps $13 billion into renovating and restoring four key jetties in historic town
Jetties in Lamu play a very important role since they are the only entry and exit points to the Kenyan historic town and other adjacent islands.
Life in Lamu County is set to become a little bit easier after the government announced it has released Sh130 million ($13 billion) for the renovation and restoration of four key jetties in the county which are currently structurally unsound.
Speaking in Lamu on Friday, Chief Structural Engineer in the Public Works Department, Hillary Nyaanga, said those to be renovated include Mokowe Customs Jetty, Lamu Terminal Jetty, Manda Airport Jetty, and Mtangawanda Jetty.
“We want to give all the Lamu jetties a modern facelift. For the Mokowe Jetty, we will have to reconstruct it afresh. For the Lamu Terminal Jetty, we will have to change a section. At Manda Airport Jetty, we will repair the pontoon which is already in the water and also do protection work.” Said Mr.Nyaanga.
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In March this year, the government announced plans to reconstruct and renovate six jetties in Lamu county most of which face closure due to poor maintenance.
99 per cent of movement and transport by Lamu residents is also by sea.
However, due to years of neglect and under funding, most jetties in Lamu are in a deplorable state.
Some lanes have collapsed, endangering travellers.
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“We have already received cash to undertake the first phase of renovation of four key jetties in Lamu,” Mr Nyaanga said.
The official had earlier announced that Sh400 million will be spent on building Mokowe jetty.
A total of Sh80 million had been set aside for building the Mokowe Customs Jetty, and Sh25 million was allocated to the renovation of Lamu Terminal Jetty.
Sh20 million will go towards renovation of Manda Airport Jetty while another Sh5 million will be used to renovate the Mtangawanda Jetty.
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Apart from the four jetties, others which also require urgent renovation include Kizuke Jetty and Jeti ya Ng’ombe.
Work is set to begin by September this year.
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