also remember that djibouitis port is not as deep as lamu, meaning big ships cannot dock in djibouti. also consider that maybe (am using the word maybe) somalia will be peaceful in the near future, they will just need to connect with kenya by a few kilometres of tarmack in order to import goods from kenya. and by the way oil explorations at ngamia1 and at maikona in marsabit north district.

Fact the moment the Northern oil-field's oil starts to trickle ...you will all be racing for a piece of the pie along LAPSSET..but its knock on effects are what that could be confounding Imagine the whole frontier up to Mali or even doing Coast-to-Coast commerce ..from Dakar to Lamu..sounds far fetched but this lapsset could be the biggest thing ever to happen to Africa ..can i hear an oh-hail-Kibaki ...yeaah:d/

[quote=limanika]This is exactly what we are saying, the upgrade of existing Mombasa- Malaba rail to standard gauge should have been done yesterday as a matter of priority. There is no point building Lamu - Juba rail right now yet the Lamu port is not ready/even operational for the next say five years.

http://www.standardmedia...-or-lose-out-kenya-told[/quote]

It's a waste of resources and won't give Kenya a competitive edge as China has announced plans to invest $10 billion to build a new port at Bagamoyo which is northwest of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania.
The new port will be able to handle 20 million cargo containers a year. The current port facilities at Dar es Salaam can only handle 800,000 containers a year. New roads and railroads will connect to existing road and railroad networks, and these will also undergo upgrades. This will make Tanzania the main port for raw materials coming out of and goods going into Malawi, Zambia, Congo, Burundi, Rwanda, and Uganda. This makes Tanzania a major East African shipping destination because Bagamoyo will become the largest port in Africa and will well compete with the ports in Persian Gulf.

@Limanika,
Assuming you are not Mutiga,there are many who thhink that we are taking our neighbours for granted at our own peril.......and this neighbours are saying,"Must we look up at Kenya for everything?"

http://www.nation.co.ke/...20/-/gpa2ij/-/index.html

[quote=limanika]This is exactly what we are saying, the upgrade of existing Mombasa- Malaba rail to standard gauge should have been done yesterday as a matter of priority. There is no point building Lamu - Juba rail right now yet the Lamu port is not ready/even operational for the next say five years.

http://www.standardmedia...-or-lose-out-kenya-told[/quote]

@limanika, Will the rail be operational NOW?
If we don't start NOW,when is the right time to start?
Had we started 5 years ago, don't you think we would have taken out some wind out of "our neighbors" sails?

@limanika, Are you for downgrade or you are against gov't funding?
What Ethiopians are doing on their end, is it okay? Extending infrastructure to S. Sudan?
If the whole project [LAPSSET] will take 5 years or more, how will be S.Sudan's economy be like?
Should we start telling our financial institutions not to set up shop in S. Sudan until after say, 5 years?
All in all,the project is already behind times. Maybe we should be discussing the mode of funding.

http://www.the-star.co.k...basa-port-inefficiences
I think my point has been made, as in the last one day or two, the World Bank and all the major media houses have reported my concerns very effectively (Star, Standard, Nation, Capital News, Kameme etc) In essence what they have said is: reduce the inefficiencies at Mombasa port and upgrade the lunatic to standard gauge or the economy loses out to new comers. None of them mentioned Lapsset in the same sentence. We can now retire this thread, the point having been made. Next!