Traders anxious after long wait for Kakamega market

Traders are running out of patience for the new Kakamega market whose construction is in its third year. This time again, they will have to wait longer to sell their wares in the modern market after the contractor failed to hand it over to the municipal council last month. The traders at the weekend expressed concern that they may not use the market.

Channa Construction company, which started work on the Sh153 million market in 2010, was expected to hand over the market to the council before April. Channa however sought an extension of 45 days because of delays caused by rains. Last month, the contractor wrote to the Ministry of Local Government seeking an extra 30 days to complete the construction.

“We wanted this stall to be occupied by October, but the contractor said he needs more time because of heavy rains that have made it impossible to finalise the project in time,” said mayor Matias Sichere. Sichere said traders, who were relocated from the site to pave the way for construction, are worried they may not return to the market soon.

“These traders suspect the councillors may have shared the stalls among themselves because the council keeps postponing the handover,” he said. Once completed, the market, funded by the Ministry of Local Government will host more than 1,000 traders in its over 500 stalls.