Leaders call for compensation, community sensitisation as SGR to Kisumu looms

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Compensation talks dominated the first consequential engagement between local leaders, the National Land Commission, and Kenya Railways on the extension of the Naivasha to Kisumu to Malaba Standard Gauge Railway.

Leaders who attended the engagement asked NLC and Kenya Railways to engage the community and sensitise them about the project.

They argued that most projects have failed in the past because of issues of compensation.

The 269 kilometres Phase 2B of the standard-gauge railway project kicks off in March 2025 and will end by June 2027.

Speaking during the engagement, Kisumu West MP Rosa Buyu noted that the community in Kisumu is still grappling with issues of compensation that revolved around bigger projects of roads, airport, among others, several years later.

She argued that there is a need to explain to the community that nobody will shortchange them after they are displaced by the Standard-Gauge Railway project.

"We need to begin talking to them to avoid resistance. Explain to them what you have explained to us here, and prepare them psychologically about this. The community where I come from, in Kisumu West, is among those affected by compensation issues of major projects in this county, and I do not want this project to present the same challenges," said MP Buyu.

Kisumu Central ward MCA Zack Okoyo noted that just like the leaders had been informed, the people who will be affected by the project need to have the information they now have, especially on compensation.

Muhoroni MP James Koyoo told Kenya Railways to ensure that the locals are engaged with employment during the project construction.

"I am interested in knowing the contractor. Our people must be employed to work and benefit from this project. The contractor should not bypass our people. This is the only way our people will embrace this project," he said.

Governor Anyang Nyong'o described the project as a structural economic intervention.

"We have witnessed, through the transformative impact of the Mombasa–Nairobi standard gauge railway connecting Mombasa and Nairobi, how modern rail infrastructure can recalibrate trade efficiency, reduce logistics costs, and reposition entire regions within national and global value chains," he said.

The Governor noted that the extension toward Kisumu and onward to Malaba will spur economic growth.

Nyong'o argued that the standard gauge line will bring with it enormous advantages over the meter gauge, which was designed for a different economic era, one of smaller volumes and slower trade cycles.

He added that a modern standard-gauge corridor will position Kenya competitively within the East African trade network.

"Kisumu, situated strategically on the shores of Lake Victoria, stands to emerge as a multimodal logistics hub. It integrates rail, lake transport, and road networks. This synergy will unlock commerce with Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, South Sudan, and beyond," he said.

According to Nyong'o, this corridor will expand trade, lower the cost of doing business, stimulate industrial parks, strengthen our agricultural value chains, and catalyze new investment in warehousing, cold storage, fisheries, and manufacturing.

Engineer Tobias Okumu of Kenya Railways said the Naivasha to Kisumu to Malaba line will have one terminus and six intermediate stations.

The passengers will board and embark at Sondu, Ahero, Sotik, and Narok, with Kisumu having two passenger stations.

According to Okumu, the project will also have two freight stations within the Kodiaga and Port area.

Valuation and taxation Director at NLC, Joel Ombati, said there will be relocation of more people in Kisumu than any other county with this project, and called on residents to be ready with proper documentation to make the process of compensation swift.

Ombati noted that out of 269 kilometres of land to be acquired for this project, a huge chunk will be concentrated in Kisumu.

He noted that the commission will not use the normal compensation process for this project because of time, stating that data will be collected through digital means.

Kenya Railways MD Philip Mainga noted that currently both NLC and KR are on the ground to sensitise the community about the project.

"We will give the local leaders feedback after the sensitisation exercises. Already, the Kisumu East and Muhoroni constituencies MPs have given me directives on which areas to begin with," he added.