Kenya recently launched its newest mega infrastructure project, the Lamu port, which is a part of an ambitious transport corridor between Lamu (a small archipelago north of Mombasa in Kenya), South Sudan and Ethiopia. The Lamu port is believed to be a cornerstone of the Kenyan government’s Vision 2030 development plan, and is now being branded as a ‘game changer’ project. The port is part of the wider US $23 billion Lamu Port South Sudan-Ethiopia Transport (LAPSSET) corridor and has been constructed by China Communications Construction Company, with the first three of the planned 32 berths coming at a cost of US $367 million. This transport corridor is touted to comprise a standard gauge railway line; an oil pipeline and refinery; road network; international airports at Isiolo, Lamu, Lokichogio; the port of Lamu at Manda Bay; and resort cities.
Submission on the Challenges and Threats Facing Climate Defenders
To the UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association
Human Rights Watch welcomes the opportunity to provide input on the challenges and risks facing climate defenders for the upcoming report by the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association. While recognizing that climate defenders face threats in countries all over the world, we have chosen in this submission to focus largely on incidents and trends that we have documented in our prior research, namely in Brazil, France, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Philippines, Poland, Russia, South Africa, and Uganda, including the experiences of Indigenous peoples, women, and children.
I was Entrusted With Uhuru s Life For 3 Hours - Boat Captain
27 May 2021 - 12:21 pm
President Uhuru Kenyatta (front left) talks to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed during a boat ride in Mombasa in December 2020.
File
A Kenya Power Company employee has narrated his encounter with President Uhuru during their boat ride in the Indian Ocean in December 2020.
In a profile released by Kenya Power, popularly known by its NSE ticker KPLC, on Thursday, May 27, Captain Khatmi Famau disclosed that he felt honoured when he was chosen to steer the boat that Uhuru and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed were to ride in.
THE STANDARD
REAL ESTATE
An aerial view of the ongoing construction of the Nairobi Expressway passing through waiyaki way on Marrch 7, 2021. [David Gichuru,Standard]
The government sometimes decides to acquire private land without necessarily asking the owners if they are willing to give it up. This is called compulsory acquisition.
If the government wants to build a roadway that passes through your parcel of land, they will seize the land and compensate you.
The same will happen if there is a mineral deposit in your land. You will not cash in on those gold reserves, it all belongs to the State. And if a public purpose facility is to come up, such as for defence, stadia, schools and hospitals, the government always gets its way.