How Kerra is using technology to improve roads in rural areas

President Uhuru Kenyatta

President Uhuru Kenyatta, Transport CS James Macharia (left) and Kenya Rural Roads Authority (Kerra) Acting Director-General Philemon Kandie (centre) during the commissioning of the Kodaga-Wagau-Akala road in Siaya County.

Photo credit: PSCU

The Jubilee administration has so far built more than 10,000 kilometres of roads in the last eight years, and almost half of them have been built by the Kenya Rural Roads Authority (Kerra), Transport Cabinet Secretary James Macharia has said.

The government is implementing Low Volume Sealed Roads (LVSR) innovative technology to upgrade roads to sealed or paved standard, increasing their pavement life to at least 15 years and lowering their whole life costs and ultimately opening up rural areas, decongesting major towns, and promoting domestic and regional connectivity, said the CS.

“Through the Low Volume Seal Road programme, the authority has achieved 4,400km of new roads built to bitumen standards. These roads are found in all the 47 counties,” Mr Macharia said. 

Kerra Director General Philemon Kandie said the value of the current volume of contracted work was Sh375 billion.

“The authority, together with the rest of the sector at large, shall spur economic activities countrywide through purchase and use of commodities at an industrial and commercial level such as those used for road construction and at a subsidiary level such as materials for human consumption as bought by people directly and indirectly employed in these projects,” he said.

He further said that to ensure parity in development the Government initiated the Equalisation Fund to spur economic growth of 14 previously marginalised counties. As one of the implementing agencies for the fund, the authority is undertaking road works valued at Sh3.6 billion.

The government had particularly targeted rural roads with the 10,000 kilometres road plan that would see gravel and earth roads upgraded to bitumen using the LVSR which is faster and cheaper to execute.

Materials are sourced from rural areas and Kerra plans to spend Sh5.6 billion every year in road construction using LVSR until 2022, when it should have completed some 7,000 kilometres.

Among the projects that have been completed by Kerra is the 45km-Mariakani-Bamba road in Ganze Constituency, Kilifi County. 

The road, whose construction was launched by President Uhuru Kenyatta in 2016, starts at the Mariakani-Kaloleni road junction and ends at Bamba trading centre.

Mr Kandie said the authority has also completed the construction of the Sh4.1 billion Malindi-Sala Gate road in Kilifi, which links Malindi town and the Tsavo East National Park.

The 53km Samburu-Kinango road, which had remained unattended to since independence has also been tarmacked.

In the Financial Year 2020/2021, the authority dedicated Sh924 million of its procurement budget to youth, women and people with disabilities (Access to Government Procurement Opportunities). This will ensure enhanced inclusiveness, fostering and enhancing national cohesion with the special category. 

The total value of contracts awarded to special groups was as follows; youth Sh368 million, women Sh380 million and people with disability Sh175 million.