Kenya airport set to handle 7m more travellers
Jomo Kenyatta International Airport that will have 44 parking bays for passenger and nine for cargo flights. Photo/FILE
The new terminal at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to be completed by next year will increase its capacity to handle passengers and cargo.
After completion, the airport will be able to handle about 12 million passengers up from the current five million a year.
Parking bays
Acting Transport minister Amos Kimunya on Thursday said the expansion of JKIA had entered phase two, that will see Terminal Four completed and more parking bays.
In the second phase to cost about Sh7.6 billion, parking space will also be increased with a three storey car park to accommodate 1,500 cars.
It will have 44 parking bays for passenger and nine for cargo flights. Speaking during a tour of the airport, Mr Kimunya urged the Kenya Airports Authority to expedite the expansion, especially with the onset of the free market in East Africa.
“This will be critical in assessing our preparedness of meeting the demand for the East African market,” he said. “We need to unlock the huge potential that the airport has by increasing its capacity.”
Already, KAA has received Sh480 million for the ongoing expansion and modernisation of the airport. The grant from European Investment Bank will help minimise disruptions at JKIA during repairs of terminals and arrival halls.
It has been funded by the bank and French Development Agency with an additional Sh7.4 billion each earmarked for the upgrading the airport.
The airports authority has also received a Sh2.7 billion loan from the World Bank towards this project with Sh9 billion from its own coffers.
“Upgrading of the passenger facilities to international standards will elevate JKIA to be at par with or better than competing airports such as Addis Ababa or Cairo,” Mr Kimunya said.
The project began over three years ago with the first phase having been completed in 2008 at a cost of Sh3.2 billion. In September last year, KAA awarded the tender to build the second phase of JKIA to China National Aero-Technology International Engineering Company.
The China-based company was expected to begin constructing the new terminal Four and a multi story car park last year. However, the project is yet to begin, but Mr Kimunya said that it would kick off soon.
