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"id": 204478,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/204478/?format=api",
"text_counter": 126,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Mr. Mwakwere",
"speaker_title": "The Minister for Transport",
"speaker": {
"id": 189,
"legal_name": "Chirau Ali Mwakwere",
"slug": "chirau-mwakwere"
},
"content": " Mr. Speaker, Sir, I wish to express my Ministry's appreciation for the constructive for criticisms and suggestions made by hon. Members during the debate on Vote 14. Their views and observations have been taken seriously. Mr. Speaker, Sir, allow me to respond to some of the issues raised, by clarifying a number of them. On the clarification on the masterplan for airports and aerodromes; all our major airports have masterplans that are reviewed regularly. Those plans are currently being reviewed in light of the realities of Vision 2030. The Kenya Airports Authority intends to engage a consultant to review the existing plans for our airports and come up with a national airport system plan. Tenders for that job are now being evaluated. The authority has also commissioned a consultant for the expansion and rehabilitation of the Kisumu Airport. The works involved would include expanding and widening the existing runway. The project scope will also cover construction of a new terminal building with associated parking facilities. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the Kenya Airports Authority continues to take security of our airports seriously. The National Civil Aviation Security Committee composed of all our security agencies has performed well on that issue. Some of the ongoing security projects include erection of security perimeter fences, watchtowers, et cetera . A consultant has completed the study on Wilson Airport, which includes the enhancement of security at that national facility. Mr. Speaker, Sir, I wish to clarify on the service contract the for Director-General of the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority. The Director-General's contract runs up to December, 2007. The Board will follow the guidelines on terms and conditions of service for Chief Executives of State Corporations issued by the Office of the President in handling his case. Mr. Speaker, Sir, on the clarification on the Integrated National Transport Policy, the Task Force completed its work on that document in 2004. Thereafter, the main exercise was discussed with the stakeholders. They undertook the necessary revisions of the document. That took time and led to the delay in releasing the report. Following those consultations, a draft Seasonal Paper has September 11, 2007 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 3791 now been prepared. That Seasonal Paper is now ready and is awaiting Cabinet discussion and approval before it is presented to this august House. On enforcement of road safety rules, my Ministry fully appreciates the concerns raised in this House on the current road indiscipline and resultant carnage. Rest assured that, that is the concern of this Ministry as well. The Ministry of Transport appreciates hon. Members' recognition that handling carnage entails actors from within and without Government. In 2004, my Ministry came up with rules to restore order and discipline on our roads. Since then, enforcement of those rules, which is outside the mandate of my Ministry, has continued to be a major challenge. That problem, coupled with the poor state of some of our roads, explains the carnage. My Ministry will, therefore, liaise with my counterparts in the Ministries of State for Provincial Administration and Internal Security as well as that of Roads and Public Works, so that the traffic police can enforce the road safety reform measures, which were introduced in 2004. The dilapidated roads will also be repaired. That is a very important issue because, all along, the blame has been directed to the Ministry of Transport and yet, our role is just the provision of regulations. That is important because Members of the Press could also be helpful to us. I read from some of the reports that the country is regarded as having some of the worst accident-prone roads. That is true. But that is the responsibility of a sister Ministry and not the Ministry of Transport. The cause of accidents is poor enforcement of traffic laws. That again is the responsibility of a sister Ministry and not the Ministry of Transport. It is further observed that there is a problem of over-speeding and drunk-driving. Again, the enforcement lies in another Ministry and not the Ministry of Transport. The list is long, but it is important to note that our role is regulation and not enforcement. The traffic congestion in the City of Nairobi is being addressed not just by the Ministry of Transport, but by the Ministry of Local Government, the Ministry of Roads and Public Works and the Traffic Department in the Ministry of State for Provincial Administration and Internal Security. The African Development Bank is, nonetheless, carrying out a detailed study on the planned introduction of a light rail in Nairobi. As indicated in my earlier statement when I was introducing the Vote, the Ministry intends to introduce the bus rapid transport system in the City of Nairobi. On maritime search and rescue, my Ministry wishes to reaffirm the establishment of a Regional Maritime Search and Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Mombassa, in conjunction with the International Maritime Organisation and International Maritime Search and Rescue Convention of 1979. The centre was launched in May, 2006 and has human and equipment capacity to receive and transmit ships and crews in distress at sea and co-ordinate subsequent search and rescue operations. The Ministry has developed a search and rescue plan which specifies how search and rescue services should be organised and delivered by the various designated agencies. The provision of search and rescue services in Lake Victoria will be undertaken jointly by the three partner States, who have already ratified the agreement. The agreements facilitates those States to pool resources together to cope with any accident. Currently, the Ministry plans to instal a radio station on the Kenya side of the lake. It will be receiving signals from the Marine Rescue Co-ordination Centre based in Mombassa. Mr. Speaker, Sir, my Ministry, in conjunction with the Kenya Ports Authority, has endeavoured to ensure that navigational aids along the Coast are adequate and up to international standards. It is true that navigational aids in Lake Victoria have been lacking. But plans have already been finalised, through donor support under the Lake Victoria Basin Commission framework, to undertake hydro graphic survey and mapping of the lake and install navigational aids. On the issue of seafarers, my Ministry appreciates the concerns that have been raised by Members on the plight of Kenyan seafarers. But I want to assure hon. Members that, after the enactment of the Merchant Shipping Bill, 2007, which is before this House, training and certification problems of our seafarers will be resolved. On the privatisation of port services, I thank hon. Members for their interest in the 3792 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES September 11, 2007 development of the Port of Mombassa. For the past four years, efforts have been made to license private parties for a number of activities at the Port. Those include handling and storage of imported motor vehicles, container freight stations, handling of soda ash, waste management, grain bulk handling and handling of cruise ships. Mr. Speaker, Sir, an attempt was made to privatise the management of cruise ships terminals in an effort to promote cruise-passenger tourism but the response was discouraging. International bids were invited for the development of a free port area, but inadequate response was encountered. The Ministry has not been discouraged by this development and continues to pursue the concept. One of the 20 flagship projects in the Vision 2030 is the creation of a free port in Mombasa. My Ministry and the Kenya Ports of Authority (KPA) are exploring the best options available to ensure this project takes off. On clarification on competition between Mombasa, Tanga, Dar es Salaam and Djibouti ports, we are aware of the challenges the Port of Mombasa is facing from the ports of Tanga, Dar es Salaam and Djibouti. To address this, we have embarked on programmes involving:- (i) widening of the interest challenge and dredging the Kilindini Basin; (ii) construction of an additional container terminal at Berth 19; and, (iii) construction of a new container terminal near Port Reitz, which will be funded by the Japan Bank for International Development (JBIC). This new terminal will accommodate big ships, making the Port a hub for the region. Mr. Speaker, Sir, on clarification on port congestion, it is true that congestion has been a problem at the Port of Mombasa for some time now. This has been caused largely by the inadequate capacity of the Rift Valley Railways (RVR), and also the often unnecessary restrictive measures that have been put in place by the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA). This is being addressed but my Ministry is requesting the KRA to co-operate and attend meetings whenever we invite them to do so in order to solve this problem. This has compelled my Ministry to take swift intervention measures. Among the measures taken is to allow importers to change from railway to road transportation and also the transfer of containers from the Port of Mombasa to outside freight stations. However, approval from the KRA has still to be sought to make this possible and this is a problem. My Ministry has also impressed upon the KRA the need to expedite the auctioning of containers abandoned by importers at the Port, which have been compounding the problem of congestion. On clarification on Grain Bulk Handlers Limited (GBHL), it is true that a licensing agreement is currently in force between the KPA and the GBHL. The agreement will expire in January, 2008. It is equally true that this company has approached the KPA for a renewal of the licence for another 25 years. The board of the KPA has scrutinised this request and, in view of its implication, did not approve it. On clarification on the Meteorological Department, the budget for the Meteorological Department has been increased substantially in the last three financial years from Kshs920,246,833 in the 2005/2006 Financial Year to Kshs1,036,718,426 in the Financial Year 2007/2008. This increase in financial resources has enabled the Department to embark on programmes of capacity building and modernisation of its equipment, as well as the expansion of meteorological systems. The objective of these programmes is to enable this Department to serve all sectors of the economy throughout the country by giving more accurate information on the weather. On clarification on the Kenya National Shipping Line (KNSL), may I assure the House that the KNSL is still in existence. The Government is the principal shareholder through the KPA. This shipping line does not own ships, but performs business by buying stocks from other shipping lines. The performance of this company has been low-key and the Ministry, therefore, is reviewing how it can be strengthened so that it can play a more proactive role in promoting shipping business September 11, 2007 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 3793 in the economy. Mr. Speaker, Sir, on clarification on the Kenya Railways Corporation (KR), I appreciate the concerns raised by hon. Members on the performance of the rail transport, considering that it is a key mode of transport, whose performance affects business in the whole region. May I take this opportunity to give some background to the concession process. The Government resorted to the option of occasioning after the performance of the KR deteriorated to the extent of it being unable to pay salaries to the staff, nor meet its commercial and statutory obligations. For the last three years, the Ministry was compelled to seek subsidies amounting to Kshs3 billion from the Treasury for its operations. This unsustainable and poor performance of the corporation forced the Governments of Kenya and Uganda to embark on a concession. The process was done through international bidding and Kan Rail and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) were engaged as the transaction advisors for the Governments of Uganda and Kenya respectively. Nine companies showed interest and M/s Shelter now the Rift Valley Railways, emerged the winner. Hon. Members may recall that this concession transaction deal was given recognition internationally as one that was done above board. Mr. Speaker, Sir, at the time the RVR took over the operations, the maintenance of wagons, trucks and locomotives had been neglected and the RVR was required to invest and bring the facilities to the level at which they would perform better. I would like to inform hon. Members that it takes seven to nine months from the time an order is placed to the time when spare parts are delivered from abroad. Given that the RVR has been in effective control of railway operations from 15th December, 2006, it is too early to judge the company. The contract takes cognisance of the unique nature of this industry, and the first evaluation of the performance will be done after two years in accordance with the contract. At the moment, the RVR operates locomotives and wagons which have not yet been fully rehabilitated, and forces them to operate at the low speed of 20 to 30 kilometres per hour. But from data provided by the concessionaire, there has been gradual improvement, which is expected to become noticeable in the coming months. It is worth noting that the Treasury is no longer giving subsidy and the KR is now receiving cheques from the RVR and, therefore, is no longer a burden to the taxpayers. Hon. Members raised the issue of retrenchment of the KR employees, and I would like to inform them that effective handling of retrenchment payment was recognised as a critical aspect of the whole process of occasioning. A consultant was engaged to audit payment for the retrenchees. To date, most of the retrenchees have been paid and only a small proportion has not been paid due to delays in certification of their employment records. It is worth noting that there is also support to a pension fund start-up. I would like to take this opportunity to inform hon. Members that the KR still exists as the owner of the assets, and is expected to undertake monitoring of the activities of the concessionaire. Let me assure this House that the whole process of the concession was done above board, that is, in an open manner. Mr. Speaker, Sir, on clarification on development of the second transport corridor, I appreciate the support from hon. Members to a proposal for the development of a Lamu Port, and the associated infrastructure of a modern airport, oil pipeline, a railway and a road network to link Lamu to Southern Sudan and Ethiopia. I would like to inform hon. Members that for about two years, the Ministry has been searching for interested investors for the second port but none has come forward. The Ministry has also approached several development partners with no success. However, following the presentation of a concept paper on this project to International Investors Conference in Nairobi in March, 2005 by KESULO inviting investors who are interested, only one investor, the Albader International Company of Kuwait, sent a proposal. This investor expressed desire to implement the project proposal which had been prepared by the inter-Ministerial team chaired by the Ministry of Transport. 3794 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES September 11, 2007 To date, a draft agreement has been prepared and a Cabinet Paper presented to the Cabinet in December, 2006. The Cabinet made comments that required further discussion. The refined document will be submitted to the Cabinet for approval. In view of the nature of this project, its implementation will involve many players from Kenya and other parts of the world who will be led by the lead investor; the Albader International Company. The Ministry regards this as an opportunity to change the whole country economically for the better and the project will play a key role in achieving the objectives of the transport sector in the Kenya Vision 2030. I, therefore, seek your continued support and hope that this project will be implemented on \"Build-Operate-Transfer concept.\" Hon. Members are aware that development of infrastructure in the whole world is now being done on a BOT process which enables development of such infrastructure with little or no Government expense at once. In this regard, it is expected that once the developers implement the project or proposal, it will make significant contribution to this economy. With regard to clarifications under the issues falling under the Ministry of Roads and Public Works, many comments were made on issues which do not really fall under the Ministry of Transport. Hon. Members raised concerns on a number of issues that fall under the mandate of the Ministry of Roads and Public Works. Such issues include poor management and corruption at weighbridges. The Ministry of Transport does not construct weighbridges nor does it man them. Our role is to come up with regulations and the rest is done by a sister Ministry. There was also the issue of gravelling of roads when the rains start and the poor state of some roads which also contributes to road carnage. I intend to communicate these concerns to my counterpart in the Ministry of Roads and Public Works for appropriate action. Mr. Speaker, Sir, Kenya Airports Authority (KAA), in the Financial Year, 2004/2005, embarked on a programme of rehabilitating various airstrips in the country. A total of 28 airstrips have so far been rehabilitated, in spite of inadequate budgetary provisions as already highlighted in my statement to this august House. In the current Financial Year, additional 25 airstrips will be rehabilitated using Kshs157 million that has been availed by Treasury. In our liberalised market, the airlines have the freedom of assessing the routes in order to establish their viability before introducing flights. The Ministry cannot, therefore, compel Kenya Airways to introduce flights to Eldoret International Airport. The Ministry will, however, communicate the sentiments expressed in this august House, on this issue and others that have been raised, to the management of Kenya Airways. Mr. Speaker, Sir, that ends my reply. I beg to move."
}