Raila attends Lapsset ministerial meeting in Ethiopia

African Union High Representative for Infrastructure Development, Raila Odinga is in Ethiopia for a ministerial meeting for the Lamu Port-South Sudan-Ethiopia-Transport corridor.

The ministerial meeting brings together stakeholders from relevant departments in the region to review the project’s progress.

"The regional initiative is a game-changer on matters of infrastructure development," Raila tweeted on Monday.

The meeting comes a few weeks after President Uhuru Kenyatta commissioned the first berth of the Lamu Port, which is part of the larger Lapsset project.

The former Prime Minister has urged other regional countries to support the project.

In August 2019, the Lapsset Corridor Development Authority said a strong case had been made to the AU on the project’s strategic position to connect not only Ethiopia and South Sudan, but also connecting to Central African Republic and Cameroon, terminating at Port of Douala.

"AU’s special envoy plans to convene a high level meeting with the countries that fall along Africa’s equatorial land bridge later in the year with an aim of forming these crucial transport infrastructure linkages within the continent," the authority said in a statement.

Raila who met with the Lapsset Corridor Development Authority noted that the Lapsset corridor has the potential to boost Africa’s regional social-economic integration through infrastructure development and trade.

Lapsset was launched in 2012 during former President Mwai Kibaki's regime.

The Kenyan government is putting up the first three berths of the planned 32 berths at an estimated cost of Sh71.5 billion. The entire 32 berths are estimated to cost Sh319.8 billion.