KENYA PORTS AUTHORITY
New port will expand operational role of KPA
T
he Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) has sole responsibility for the management and administration of the nation’s ports and harbours. It is a publicly held body established under an Act of Parliament in January 1978.
This situation is set to change with the opening of a new 32-berth commercial port now under construction at Manda Bay, Lamu, which will also be operated by the KPA.
The KPA is also charged with maintaining navigation aids, pilotage, towage, mooring, stevedoring and shoreside handling.
Gateway
Until now these responsibilities have been confined largely to the Port of Mombasa and a few small harbours along the coast such as Lamu, Malindi, Kilifi, Mtwapa, Kiunga, Shimoni, Funzi and Vanga. In addition, two potential port sites have been identified by the KPA at Takaungu and Ngomeni.
The Port of Mombasa is the gateway to East and Central Africa. It is one of the busiest ports on the East African coast, with direct connectivity to over 80 ports worldwide. The port’s natural hinterland comprises Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, northern Tanzania, South Sudan, Somalia and Ethiopia. Once complete, the new Lamu port will improve connections to South Sudan and Ethiopia. Despite calls for some berths within the Port of Mombasa to be operated by non-KPA interests, the main cargo handling facilities, including the new
KENYA PORTS AUTHORITY HANDBOOK 2017-18
second container terminal, remain under the Authority’s direct control and day-to-day operation. As such, the KPA is not moving to a landlord status as previously envisaged under a government restructuring policy. Instead, the emphasis has been placed on enhancing the KPA’s own capabilities by raising productivity, eliminating delays and bottlenecks and working closely with port users, both in Kenya and in key neighbouring states. The aim is to speed up transit times to Nairobi and beyond.
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