Kenya’s most ambitious infrastructure project in recent memory may face significant obstacles after five people entered guilty pleas to unlawfully intruding on land designated for the Ksh468 billion Nairobi–Mombasa Expressway.
The multibillion-shilling route, which was hailed as a revolution in East Africa’s transportation and logistics industry, is currently mired in a legal and land ownership maze that might impede or even reverse its advancement.
The expressway, once complete, is expected to cut travel time between Nairobi and Mombasa from over 10 hours to just four, easing cargo movement from Kenya’s largest port to the capital and beyond.
However, recent court proceedings have brought to light the scale of land grabbing and fraudulent claims surrounding the proposed route. In a Machakos court, the five individuals admitted to unlawfully occupying and fencing off parcels of public land intended for the highway.
Their guilty pleas mark a rare moment of accountability in a country where infrastructure projects are frequently mired in disputes over compensation, fake title deeds, and corruption.
The National Land Commission (NLC) has since launched a wider investigation into potential collusion between rogue surveyors and land officials who may have facilitated the illegal acquisition of road reserves.
“This case is just the tip of the iceberg,” said a senior official at the Ministry of Roads. “If we do not address these encroachments decisively, the entire project is at risk.”
The expressway, funded through a Public-Private Partnership with American firm Bechtel, is also facing pressure from environmentalists and local communities who fear displacement and ecological damage.
As legal drama unfolds, Kenyans are left questioning whether this vital artery of progress will ever break ground, or whether vested interests and systemic inefficiencies will once again sabotage national development.
