- Upgrade of the roads will however be subject to availability of funds
- Residents don’t have direct access roads to Naivasha being surrounded by Hell’s Gate National Park, Gorge Park, and Oserian flower farm.
Image: KIPCHUMBA MURKOMEN / X
The government has announced plans to upgrade to bitumen standards road links in Narok East constituency to enable easy access to Naivasha by ‘landlocked’ residents.
Roads and Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen said there are also plans to open up the constituency to access Suswa Standard Gauge Railway and Mai Mahiu-Narok Road.
“However, this will be subject to the availability of funds,” the CS said in his submissions to the Public Petitions Committee of the National Assembly.
The CS said it would cost Sh1.53 billion to upgrade to bitumen standard Suswa-Inkorienito-Naivasha Road.
Some sections of the road are earth others are gravelled.
The road connects Naivasha, Suswa Standard Gauge Railway and Mai Mahiu-Narok- Nairobi Road.
The residents of the constituency have petitioned the House to intervene saying they don’t have direct access roads to Naivasha being surrounded by Hell’s Gate National Park, Gorge Park, and Oserian flower farm.
They claim they are only allowed to pass through Hell’ Gate on Monday and Thursday, which disrupts health facilities and government services.
They also claim that those wishing to use the road must pay access fees or obtain prior permission to do so.
“The residents of Inkoirienito, Olmara, Narasha, Oltepesi, and Suswa are socially and economically landlocked because the only available access road is limited by farms and other structures like the Kedong’ Farm, Gorge Park, Hell’s Gate and Oserian Farm,” the petition reads.
It added that for a long time, the communities have lacked direct road access to potential markets, health facilities, and other essential government services.
“Residents have been forced to take longer routes to access health services,” the petition adds.
They now want the House to intervene and facilitate having an access road to directly link affected areas and Moi South Lake Road in Naivasha.
On August 10, 2023, Wildlife Principal Secretary Silvia Museiya asserted that the government cannot allow Narok East residents to pass through Hells Gate National Park to access some areas of Naivasha.
Museiya told the committee Hells Gate National Park is a protected area that which government is committed to protecting and conserving.
The committee raised queries about the reasoning behind allowing roads like Mombasa Road to pass through Tsavo National Park without constraint, despite the imperative of conserving the area.
Members further highlighted that if passage is already permitted twice a week, there seems to be no inherent reason to withhold access on the remaining days.