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Ruto: Without PPP financing, we would have waited forever to fix Nairobi-Nakuru road
President William Ruto launches the dualling of 175km Rironi-Mau Summit road at Mau Summit in Nakuru County on November 28, 2025.
President William Ruto has defended the public-private partnership (PPP) model through which the road construction he launched on Friday is funded.
Without it, he said, the Rironi-Mau Summit highway whose dualling he initiated in Rironi would have been a distant dream.
“The situation was clear. If we waited for the national budget to release resources for this project, we would have waited a lifetime. If we borrowed, we would have added to our debts and burdened our children for generations to come. If we taxed more, we would have suffocated families. And if we did nothing, we would have surrendered to stagnation,” said Dr Ruto.
Terming the project a product of “a world-class public-private partnership model”, he said it was an effort towards breaking the chains of stagnation.
“We promised to be innovators, we promised to build differently, and today, we keep that promise boldly, unapologetically, unmistakably,” said Dr Ruto, adding that the project is due to “the audacity to think big when the world expects us to think small”.
“It is an investment of over Sh170 billion; a living demonstration of what happens when the government stops trying to do everything alone and starts doing things smarter and in partnership with the private sector,” said the President.
Through it, he said the Nairobi-Nakuru-Mau Summit corridor will be “strengthened to handle heavy commercial traffic, supported by new interchanges, truck laybys, pedestrian bridges, lighting, barriers, drainage systems, and intelligent transport technology to enhance safety”.
The Nairobi-Maai Mahiu-Naivasha section, on the other hand, will be “upgraded to handle steep gradients and high cargo volumes, linking efficiently to the Naivasha Inland Container Depot and the emerging industrial ecosystem”.
“Together, these upgrades will modernise the corridor, unlocking faster, safer, and more efficient movement of people and goods, not only across Kenya, but across East and Central Africa. This route is a vital artery linking Nairobi to Uganda, South Sudan, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, sustaining our economy and powering regional trade and opportunity,” said Dr Ruto.
President William Ruto addresses residents of Mau Summit in Nakuru County where he made his third launch of the dualling of the Rironi-Mau Summit highway on November 28, 2025.
He also spoke of the potential of the project to impart new skills on Kenyan youth, noting that 15,000 young Kenyans will learn from the builders as they help in the construction.
“It will not only construct roads, but careers and futures, with local content leading and Kenyan businesses at the centre,” said Dr Ruto.
“We also honour and welcome the expertise of our Chinese partners, whose technology and experience strengthen these projects while helping build capacity within our own workforce.”
The President noted that the launch of the project is a manifestation that his administration is keen on actualising the plans and promises he made to Kenyans.
“What we are doing today is historical and a testament of our promise to transform Kenya to a First World country. Those who were doubting should start believing that this is going to happen,” said Dr Ruto.
The President vowed to launch more road projects in the coming months towards achieving his target of constructing 28,000 kilometres of tarmac roads across the country.
“Since independence, Kenya has tarmacked only 22,000 kilometres of road. Over a similar historical period, a nation such as Japan has built more than one million kilometres, a contrast that underscores the scale of our long-standing infrastructure gap,” he said.
More roads
Other roads set for expansion to dual carriage include Muthaiga to Kiambu and Ndumberi, Machakos Junction to Mariakani, Mau Summit to Kericho and Kisumu and from Kisumu to Busia.
He noted that plans are complete for a feasibility study towards the expansion of the Mau Summit Kericho and Kisumu Road.
“To finance this transformation sustainably, we are establishing both a National Infrastructure Fund and a Sovereign Wealth Fund, drawing from budgetary allocation, privatisation proceeds, natural resource royalties, and private sector capital. This approach will reduce our dependence on debt and build long-term national wealth for generations to come,” said the President.
Trade Cabinet Secretary Lee Kinyanjui noted that the road, once completed, will increase the prices of property in the region, especially land and other immovable assets.
“When the President offered me employment, I was keen to request him to consider actualising the project which will reduce the time for transporting our agricultural produce and double the prices of our properties,” said Mr Kinyanjui.
Nakuru Governor Susan Kihika noted that the widening and conversion of the road to a dual carriage is extremely vital since Nakuru serves as a gateway county to the Western Kenya and North Rift regions.
“As a major artery within the Northern Transport Corridor, dualling the route will ease congestion, enhance safety and support growth,” she said.
The expansion is expected to be completed by June 2027.
“In the coming months, we will break ground on major dual-carriageway corridors, from Muthaiga to Kiambu and Ndumberi, from Machakos Junction to Mariakani, from Mau Summit to Kericho and Kisumu, and from Kisumu onward to Busia,” said Dr Ruto.
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