- There are plans to construct an oil refinery, a Special Economic Zone and a new metropolis of approximately 1.1 million people.
- This population growth, it is expected, will be driven by opportunities for industrial, logistics and tourism development.
@ppcheti
Stereotyped because of its poor infrastructure and insecurity, Lamu was once a place not many people in the country would have wanted to visit, work or live in.
Residents here have branded themselves and their county as marginalised owing to the fact that successive governments haven’t paid as much attention to developing and improving Lamu as they have other counties across Kenya.
It is for this and a myriad of other reasons that Lamu has for the longest time been on the list of Kenya’s undeveloped regions and marked with a significantly lower population than any other county.
According to the 2019 National Census, the county only has about 143,920 people, a stark contrast to the most populous county, Nairobi, with a population of 4.3 million.
The region has been plagued with poverty and landlessness.
However, the most pronounced stereotype about Lamu county is insecurity caused by constant al Shabaab attacks in the region and other counties along the Kenya-Somalia border.
In 2014, hundreds of heavily armed al Shabaab militants descended on Mpeketoni town in Lamu West and slaughtered over 100 men and torched property including houses, vehicles and business premises worth millions of shillings in a single night.
The attack opened a dark chapter in the region as it continued to experience worse attacks over the years leading to the collapse of major sectors among them education, health, tourism and fishing.
The world was afraid of Lamu.
Fast forward to 2021 and the national government is preparing to officially launch the Sh2.5 trillion new Lamu Port South Sudan Ethiopia Transport corridor project at Kililana in Lamu West.
When the government announced plans to commence construction of the port in 2016, there were silent concerns on whether the idea was prudent considering the insecurity.
The port headquarters was completed in 2017 and the first three berths have been completed.
The second and third berths will be ready by the end of the year.
The massive port project is expected to turn Lamu into an economic, trade and industrial hub in Africa and place it on the global map.
There are plans to construct an oil refinery, a Special Economic Zone and a new metropolis of approximately 1.1 million people.
This population growth, it is expected, will be driven by opportunities for industrial, logistics and tourism development.
The port will leverage these infrastructural developments to boost investments in short and long-term agricultural value chains for products that are suited to the climatic and geological conditions of Lamu and other parts of the Lapsset corridor.
To support these developments, plans are also underway to create new sources of energy, through a coal-fired electricity generating plant, wind power and adequate infrastructure for the supply of water.
Over the last few years, Lamu has witnessed a massive inflow of people strategically positioning themselves ahead of the port launch.
The Lamu-Garsen road, the only road connecting Lamu to the rest of the world, previously renowned for being an easy target for militants who would waylay and ambush security and public service vehicles, is now undergoing renovations and is expected to be ready before the end of April.
The Sh10.8 billion road whose construction started in 2017 and is currently at 80 per cent completion, will link Lapsset to the rest of Kenya.
Though incomplete, the road has already witnessed reduced terror incidents thus renewing the confidence of tourists, traders and investors in the region.
“We are welcoming investors and all people who want to do business and we are telling them that their safety and that of their businesses is guaranteed,” Lamu county commissioner Irungu Macharia said.
The construction of the Sh1.1 billion Mokowe township road has equally changed the face of Lamu.
Mokowe is home to the county headquarters and has witnessed a steady population rise over the years as it borders Hindi town, which hosts Lapsset.
The project, which is being undertaken by the Kenya Urban Roads Authority since 2017 and is currently over 90 per cent complete, is part of the national government’s initiatives to spur urbanisation.
The plan is to transform Mokowe town into a stable urban area in readiness for the port.
The Kura director of policy strategy and compliance Mohamed Abdulrashid said, “The project has already put Mokowe on a pedestal to become a well-organised urban centre.
These projects have caused a massive exodus of traders from the traditional hub in Lamu island to Mokowe and Hindi towns.
Former Lamu Tourism Association chairperson Ghalib Alwy admitted that the projects are largely responsible for the changing perceptions of Lamu.
“People would associate Lamu with terrorism and all that but right now we are known as the new trade and industry destination. Advisories have been lifted and we are slowly going back to normal,” Alwy said.
Edited by Henry Makori