Kenya plans to begin construction of a $13.8 billion high-speed electric railway from its Indian Ocean port of Lamu to Ethiopia and South Sudan in 2025. On August 23, 2023, Kenya plans to begin construction of a $13.8 billion high-speed electric railway from its Indian Ocean port of Lamu to Ethiopia and South Sudan in 2025. According to the Lapset Corridor Development Authority responsible for the project, this 3000 kilometer standard gauge railway will connect the new port with the central Kenyan town of Isiolo and be divided into three branch lines leading to Addis Ababa, Juba, and Nairobi.

Lapset replied via email that the expected economic internal rate of return would exceed 12%, so the proposal is considered feasible. Kenya is raising $9 million from the African Union Infrastructure Fund for detailed feasibility and engineering research. The African Union believes that the corridor is a priority project connecting countries with economic output of $233 billion and a population of approximately 200 million. This monorail is part of a large-scale infrastructure project called the Ramu Port South Sudan Ethiopia Transport Corridor, which includes oil pipelines, refineries, power plants, roads, and airports, costing approximately $22 billion.

Lapset was originally conceived in the 1970s to become Kenya's second transportation corridor, but it never materialized. These plans were reactivated in 2008 and incorporated into the so-called 2030 Vision Plan, which is a long-term development blueprint aimed at transforming Kenya into an industrialized economy.

So far, Kenya has built three out of 32 berths in Lamu Port, an airport, and a road connecting Isiolo and the Ethiopian border town of Moyale. The planned railway will help reduce Ethiopia's dependence on the ports of Assab, Massawa, and the Red Sea of Djibouti in Eritrea, while also providing an alternative to Sudan in South Sudan. According to the agency, the demand for cargo handling in Ethiopia and South Sudan is expected to reach 29 million tons by 2030, with an estimated 700000 passengers using this railway annually.

The branch line to the capital cities of Ethiopia and Kenya is expected to be completed within five years. The project to connect South Sudan will begin later and is expected to be completed by 2040. The Isiolo Nairobi branch line will integrate the existing 500 kilometer line between the Lapset Corridor and Kenya's largest port, Mombasa, and the southwestern town of Naivasha.Editor/GaoLiMei