Introduction
The Lamu Port South-Sudan, Ethiopia Transport (LAPSSET) Corridor Program is a regional multi-modal infrastructure program integrating roads, railway and pipeline components in Kenya, South Sudan and Ethiopia. The program is the single largest project of its nature in Eastern Africa and is intended to provide seamless connectivity, enhance trade and logistics within the region by providing an alternative and strategic corridor to serve the landlocked neighbouring countries of Ethiopia and South Sudan.
Continental Perspective
The LAPSSET Corridor Program is designed to link with other continental corridors such as East Africa Northern Corridor,
East Africa Central Corridor and provide a land bridge through the African Great Lakes region. This will create a link
from Lamu port in the Eastern Africa Coast of India Ocean to Douala Port in the Western Africa Atlantic Ocean and help
ease trade by reducing the distance through an efficient land transport system.
Owing to its significant in the continent, the LAPSSET Transport Corridor Program was admitted to African Union Program
for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA), under NEPAD and subsequently to the Presidential Infrastructure Champion
Initiative (PICI) project under the African Union (AU) Commission. This elevation is critical in paving way for
prioritization of the project for support at the continental level through AUC/NEPAD for project preparation funding and
implementation financing. It also gives the program sufficient mileage and exposure to attract Foreign Direct Investment
(FDI) especially given the recent discoveries of oil, gas, rare minerals and coal in East Africa.
National Perspective
At the country level, the LAPSSET Corridor Program is one of the flagship Vision 2030 projects
intended to spur economic development by creating new opportunities and unlocking the latent
economic potential in the larger hinterland of Northern and North Eastern and Western parts of
Kenya. The program is also intended to provide the country with a second strategic port thereby
making the country a transport and logistics hub in the region. Among the projects components
planned locally are include:
- International Airports at Lamu, Isiolo, and Turkana
- Resort Cities at Lamu, Isiolo and Turkana;
- High Grand Falls Multipurpose Dam
Regional Perspective
At the regional level, the core participating countries are the Republic of Kenya, Federal Democratic
Republic of Ethiopia and Republic of South Sudan. The program will create a second strategic
corridor to the land locked neighbouring countries of Ethiopia and South Sudan.
The program will also position the country strategically as a trade and logistics hub by serving
the lower parts of Ethiopia and South Sudan and giving access an efficient transport network to over
100 million people. It will also link with the Northern Corridor via a link from Isiolo to Nairobi and therefore
help to ease business for the regional countries of Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and Democratic Republic
of Congo.
Business for the LAPSSET Corridor Program
Kenya is a gateway to her neighbouring land locked countries and the larger Eastern and Central Africa region
all the way to Democratic republic of Congo. These countries have traditionally been served by the Mombasa Port,
linking with the Northern Corridor. Currently Mombasa Port has undergone significant expansion, with construction
of additional Berths.
According to projections of trade volumes for both export and imports, the Mombasa Port is currently coping with
demand and this will reach a peak by 2026. Given that Mombasa port will have reached its’ expansion limit for additional
berths, the demand will outstrip capacity. The Lamu port is therefore a timely investment for the country and the
cargo traffic for the region is expected to be sustained though imports and exports via the Lamu port. The Projected
demand and capacity captured in the graph above depicts the situation that will arise in the imports and export for the
region.