Moi International Airport in Mombasa is set for a major overhaul funded at $70 million, or Sh7 billion, after Transport Cabinet Secretary James Macharia launched the rehabilitation works on Tuesday, November 20, 2018.
The project covers the airside pavements and the airfield ground lighting system, and officials said it is expected to take 24 months. Macharia said the last major rehabilitation at the airport was carried out in 1994.
He said the airport handles 80 per cent of international tourists coming into Kenya, but has not been used to its full potential. Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala said the facility can handle more than two million passengers a year, yet it currently serves about 300,000 passengers annually.
Balala urged the government, the private sector and other aviation stakeholders to back the airport so that more aircraft can land in Mombasa. He said charter traffic had improved, noting: “Currently, we have 15 charter flights coming to Mombasa every week, up from nine last that we were receiving last year. But the airport cannot rely on charter business alone, we need more international scheduled airlines,” said Balala.
He also challenged Kenya Airways to begin direct flights from Mombasa to London. Qatar Airways was expected to start direct flights to Mombasa on December 9, while Ethiopia Airline, Rwanda Air and Turkish Airline were the only carriers then operating to the coastal city.
Kenya Airports Authority chief executive Johny Andersen said work on the runway rehabilitation had started in 2014, beginning with a study on the runway’s condition, a business case, funding sources and the scope of works. He said the process was completed in 2017, when the authority secured USD65 million, representing 93 per cent of the funding, from AFD — Agence Française de Développement.
According to Andersen, Kenya Airports Authority would provide the remaining $5 million, while the World Bank would finance consultants at a cost of $900,000. French Ambassador to Kenya Aline Kuster-Menager, Mombasa Deputy Governor William Kingi and Changamwe MP Omar Mwinyi attended the event.
