NAIROBI, Kenya Mar 11 – Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen says the Ministry is working on a policy proposal to establish an Airstrip Fund.
Speaking in Migori County over the weekend, Murkomen said the special purpose levy will enable each county to have at least one airstrip for easy air transport accessibility.
“We are working on a policy to propose an airstrip fund to ensure that every county has an airstrip and then later for more viable counties, they will have more than one airstrip, to make sure that counties are more accessible and of course for other counties that are hilly and so forth they will be served in the neighbourhood or nearby county,” he said.
The Treasury in its 2023/24 budget plan set aside 727 million Shillings for the expansion and rehabilitation of airstrips.
Transport CS disclosed that they had set aside 211 million Shillings for the rehabilitation works at Migori Airstrip which will involve full reconstruction of the runway, and set up of a new apron, security fence, and patrol road.
The Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) is eyeing tourists from Tanzania and also hopes to ease pressure on travelers to South Nyanza who currently rely on Kisumu International Airport.
The state corporation that is charged with the responsibility of providing and managing a coordinated system of airports currently runs five international airports, five domestic airports, and nine airstrips.
