Ruto discusses Nairobi Railway City project with UK PM Starmer

President William Ruto on Wednesday discussed the UK-backed Nairobi Railway City project with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in New York, USA.

Ruto, who is attending the United Nations General Assembly, said his discussions with Starmer also focused on the expansion of Kenya and the UK’s trade relations.

“Kenya and the United Kingdom have a long-standing history of collaboration and friendship. We are committed to strengthening our cooperation in climate financing, implementing renewable energy initiatives, and advocating for reforms in the international financial system,” he said in an X post.

“In New York, held talks with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Our discussions also focused on the implementation of the Railway City project, the extension of our strategic partnership agreement, and the expansion of trade between our two nations.”

The Nairobi Railway City project is a flagship project in the UK-Kenya Strategic Partnership and sits on 425 acres of land in the Nairobi city centre.

It will be funded by the United Kingdom through a public-private partnership (PPP) to the tune of Ksh.30 billion.

Kenya Railways Managing Director Philip Mainga previously said the project was expected to be completed in three years and is supposed to ease mobility and interconnectivity within Nairobi and its environs.

The project’s history dates back to January 2020 when former president Uhuru Kenyatta and the former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson met and discussed it in London.

Johnson offered Kenya UK government support for the project.

The UK has since funded the project’s technical support like a review of the master plan, land due diligence, identification of priority projects, a feasibility study and detailed design and associated engineering and costing, according to documents on the Kenya Railways Corporation (KRC) website.

The KRC MD in May 2022 said the project’s final designs were handed to the Kenyan government and that construction would begin in July 2022.