This archive report was first published on 14 July 2021.
Residents of Usoma and Nawa villages in Kisumu County have been waiting for 11 years for a road closure to be lifted. The Kirembe-Nawa-Usoma road was closed in 2010 during the expansion of Kisumu International Airport.
Transport Chief Administrative Secretary Chris Obure and Kisumu West MP Olago Aluoch led talks between the residents and KAA, resulting in the agreement to open the road. Acting KAA Managing Director Felix Gitari acknowledged the significant economic and social impacts of the closure on the residents.
Gitari committed to coordinating with other government agencies to provide a lasting solution to the issue. The residents had been forced to take a longer route, covering 15 kilometres, instead of the original 500 metres.
Usoma Primary School was relocated during the airport expansion, and the new road was submerged due to the swelling of Lake Victoria waters. The closure of the road had separated families and made it difficult for children to attend school.
Residents expressed relief at the decision to open the road, with Mariam Asman saying that children had been walking long distances to school. Paul Akeyo, the chair of Usoma Council of Elders, echoed her sentiments, stating that the closure of the road had been a thorn in the flesh of residents.
Olago Aluoch had previously asked the government to intervene and save the residents from their unending agony.
