The completion of the KSh8.4 billion Mombasa-Mtwapa Highway has been pushed to December 2027, nearly two years after its original completion deadline, with the project currently just over halfway complete.
The Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) announced the revised completion date after the National Assembly’s Transport Committee inspected the project on Tuesday, September 22, 2026. The authority now expects the four-lane highway to be completed by December 16, 2027, compared with the original November 2025 target.
The project, which began in November 2022, was reported to be 55.96 per cent complete during the parliamentary inspection. Members of the committee questioned the pace of construction and sought explanations from KeNHA over the prolonged delays.
KeNHA Director of Development Henry Gakuru attributed the delays to challenges including land acquisition and compensation of Project Affected Persons (PAPs). He said inadequate budgetary allocations and delays involving public agencies, including the National Land Commission, had affected the process.
Gakuru also said disruptions in the supply of construction materials linked to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East had affected the project. The authority has further faced the challenge of working along a densely populated corridor, requiring sections of the road to be cleared progressively.
The explanations drew questions from the parliamentary committee, with Kimilili MP and committee vice chairperson Didmus Barasa questioning why challenges associated with a highly populated urban corridor had not been adequately factored into the original project timelines. He also questioned whether the authority could guarantee completion within the newly revised deadline.
The highway is an important transport link along Kenya’s Coast, connecting Mombasa with Mtwapa and supporting movement towards Kilifi, Malindi and Lamu. KeNHA’s project scope includes a four-lane dual carriageway with service lanes and grade-separated junctions designed to improve traffic flow along the busy corridor.
The project includes grade-separated junctions at Kengeleni, Bombolulu, Links Road, Bamburi, Bamburi U-turn and Shanzu, as well as six footbridges, pedestrian walkways and approximately 12 kilometres of trunk drainage. A small-scale traders’ market is also planned at Kongowea.
The revised timeline comes after earlier government projections had also pointed to delays linked to land compensation and other project challenges. In July 2025, Roads and Transport Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir told the Senate that the Mombasa-Mtwapa section was 42 per cent complete and was then expected to be finished by November 2026.
The continued delays have implications for motorists, businesses and residents along the Mombasa-Mtwapa corridor, one of the Coast’s busiest transport routes. Completion of the expanded road is expected to improve traffic movement, pedestrian safety and connectivity between Mombasa and northern Coast destinations.
With more than half of the works now completed, attention will turn to whether KeNHA can resolve the remaining land and compensation issues and accelerate construction sufficiently to meet the new December 16, 2027 deadline.
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