The PPP Directorate has said the proposed Nairobi-Mombasa Expressway is still in the transaction advisory stage, meaning procurement for the long-anticipated project has not started despite earlier government indications that tendering could advance this year.
In its latest Public Private Partnerships (PPP) Programme update issued on Friday, June 19, the agency placed the highway among projects still undergoing preparatory work, pointing to key financial and project-structuring steps that must be completed before investors are invited.
The update is the newest development on the long-awaited 461-kilometre road scheme, which aims to convert the existing A8 highway into a modern access-controlled toll expressway between Nairobi and Mombasa.
The government listed the Nairobi-Mombasa Expressway among strategic transport projects, noting that transaction advisory work for the route is still ongoing.
The report also places the project in the feasibility study and project development segment of the national PPP pipeline, showing that it has not yet reached the formal procurement or tendering stage.
This status differs from earlier expectations that the project would progress more quickly through the PPP framework after being singled out as one of the government’s flagship infrastructure priorities.
In March, Transport Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir told the Senate that the government was carrying out detailed evaluations to assess the project’s value for money, financing model and expected investment returns.
Chirchir then described the highway as a high-priority undertaking, adding that it forms part of the Northern Corridor, a vital trade route serving Kenya and several neighbouring countries.
A later PPP Directorate quarterly report released in April indicated that the project had advanced further into procurement preparation, with plans to publish a procurement document in 2026.
The advisor was expected to sharpen feasibility studies, organise financing arrangements and package the project for investor engagement before eventual procurement.
The project is estimated to cost about Ksh466.8 billion and would expand the existing highway into at least a four-lane dual carriageway, with controlled access points and tolling systems intended to improve traffic flow and safety.
The latest PPP update, however, suggests the government is still completing foundational advisory work before opening the project to investors, while also indicating deeper market engagement in the coming months.