(MAI MAHIU, NAKURU COUNTY） – South Sudan has broken ground on its logistics hub at the Mai Mahiu Special Economic Zone in Naivasha, Nakuru County, marking the first such facility by any of the five regional countries allocated land by Kenya.
The hub will serve as an alternative cargo clearance centre for South Sudan’s growing import and export volumes.
It is expected to ease congestion at the Port of Mombasa, where cargo handling is projected to rise from the current 15 million metric tonnes annually to 40 million metric tonnes within five years.
South Sudan received 10 hectares, about 25 acres, within the 6,000-acre zone for customs clearance, storage and cargo consolidation.
The first containers under the new arrangement are expected to move by rail from Mombasa to Naivasha for clearance before onward transport to South Sudan.
The project could improve the movement of more than 1.5 million tonnes of South Sudan-bound cargo handled through Mombasa each year.
Officials cite economic gateway
South Sudan’s Undersecretary for Transport, Paul Dhel Gum, said the zone would serve as a key economic gateway.
He said it would boost regional trade, improve imports and exports, and benefit traders.
Mr Gum added that Juba was also seeking additional land within the special economic zones in Mombasa, Malaba and Busia to ease cargo handling and evacuation from the Port of Mombasa.
He described the move as part of plans to improve the seamless movement of goods, boost cargo-handling efficiency and ensure timely transport.
Kenya pledges support
Cabinet Secretary for Public Service and Human Capital Development Geoffrey Ruku, who represented the Transport Cabinet Secretary, said the Kenyan government would fully support operations at the zone to boost regional trade.
Mr Ruku said Kenya was expanding the Standard Gauge Railway from Naivasha to Malaba and dualling the Rironi-Mau Summit to Malaba border road to ease the transport of goods.
Special Economic Zones Authority Chief Executive Officer Dr Kenneth Chelule said Kenya allocated free land to Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Dr Chelule said the zone had so far attracted 24 investors and was expected to register major operations in the next two years, creating hundreds of jobs.
He noted that Rwanda and Burundi were on course to start their operations at the zone.
Tax incentives outlined
Dr Chelule said the zone offered a range of investment incentives, including corporate tax of about 10 per cent for the first 10 years, 15 per cent for the next 10 years, and 30 per cent thereafter.
He said the authority had received KSh600 million, about $4,615 at the current exchange rate, from the exchequer to facilitate construction of key supporting infrastructure, including water and power connections and link roads.
He said the zone would include planned housing units, commercial centres, schools and health centres, driving economic growth and creating tens of thousands of jobs for youths and locals.
Operations expected by 2028
South Sudan’s Ambassador to Kenya, Simon Deng, said the logistical hub, once operational by 2028, would ensure timely and seamless movement of goods from the Port of Mombasa to Juba and back.
Mr Deng said the zone, which will serve as an alternative dry port for cargo clearance, would support an affordable and predictable transport system and deepen regional trade.
“Once this logistical hub starts operations, it will offer timely cargo transport and efficient goods haulage from Kenya to Juba, which will be a win for traders and businesses,” he said.
Regional officials welcome project
Dr John Diir, Executive Director for the Northern Corridor, said feasibility studies showed the region would see huge growth in cargo transport.
He said once countries established their zones for cargo handling, it would ease congestion and pressure at the Port of Mombasa.
Dr Diir said cargo handling at the port was expected to increase from 15 million metric tonnes annually to 40 million metric tonnes in the next five years.
Rwanda’s Minister for Trade and Foreign Affairs, Dr Usta Kayitesi, said the logistics hub would facilitate trade in an effective way.
Speaking during a visit to the zone, she said the Northern Corridor had been key in enabling the process and easing doing business.
“We are grateful to the Government of Kenya, which donated the logistics hub, and it’s going to ease and facilitate our trade that leads to the impact that we are looking for,” she said.
Dr Kayitesi said the facility would shorten the distance and ease the movement of cargo from the Port of Mombasa through the zone to Rwanda directly.
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