President William Ruto has refuted allegations that the government is considering leasing the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) to a private operator.
Ruto claims that Kenya is primarily focusing on a public-private partnership (PPP) to modernise the infrastructure and redesign the airport.
“We have a canvas-built arrivals airport in Nairobi. We erected this temporary construction approximately seven years ago.”
“There’s a new airport between Rwanda and Ethiopia. For this reason, to build a new airport, we must work with investors,” Ruto said.
During a town hall discussion in Mombasa on Sunday, the Head of State stated that a PPP program will be the most effective way to upgrade the airport because it permits both local and foreign investment in the project.
“Am I a crazy person? How is a strategically important national asset sold? You must be crazy.
“We must obtain the necessary funding for the airport. Working within the PPP scheme is what we want to accomplish,” he stated.
Following a public outcry over plans to have private investor Adani Airports Holding Limited invest Ksh. 242 billion to build JKIA, Ruto made his comments.
Under the Cabinet-approved JKIA Medium Term Investment Plan, Adani has proposed to renovate Kenya’s main airport over the next 30 years, and the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) confirmed receiving the proposal last week.
A public-private partnership model will implement the Indian firm’s plan, which calls for the expansion of JKIA’s passenger terminal, the construction of a new one, renovations to the taxiway and apron, and the construction of a second runway.
Legislators and civil society organizations have closely monitored the agreement because of concerns that the state is trying to “sell” JKIA.
