The announcement by Deputy President Kithure Kindiki about plans for a new airport at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport comes at a time when many Kenyans are debating the country’s long-term direction and the future of major public projects.
Kindiki explained that the current JKIA facility can no longer keep up with projected air traffic, and the government believes a new airport is necessary to support Kenya’s ambition of becoming a stronger player in global aviation. He made it clear that the current airport is old and no longer fits the country’s long-term needs, which is why the plan involves building a completely new facility instead of expanding the existing one.
Kindiki added that the new airport should help raise the number of passengers passing through Kenya, with the government aiming to move from the current 88 million annual passengers to about 100 million.
He said this target would put Kenya in direct competition with major international hubs such as Dubai International Airport.
According to him, achieving this level of growth will require serious investment and collaboration with the private sector through public-private partnerships and selective privatisation of some government-owned assets.
He stressed that money raised from privatisation will be directed to development projects like airports, roads, and dams instead of being used for salaries or other recurrent spending.
The Deputy President’s statement mirrors President William Ruto’s wider dream of transforming Kenya from a third-world country to what he often describes as a first-world nation by the year 2050. The President has repeatedly said that the country must reduce borrowing and look for new ways to finance major projects.
He argues that Kenya can only achieve faster growth if it avoids relying heavily on loans and instead uses models like PPPs that bring in private investors. Ruto made this point again during the launch of the Rironi–Mau Summit highway, where he said such partnerships allow the government to break free from debt pressure and work more efficiently.
This plan to put up a new airport is not the first time the government has tried to upgrade JKIA. In March 2024, a proposal involving Adani Airport Holdings Limited was introduced, where Adani would expand JKIA and operate it for at least 30 years under a build-operate-transfer arrangement.
However, the plan faced strong public resistance, with groups like the Law Society of Kenya and the Kenya Human Rights Commission taking the matter to court.
The high court later stopped the process to allow time for legal scrutiny.As public pressure continued, including protests in June 2024, President Ruto eventually cancelled the Adani deal in his State of the Nation Address delivered in November 2024.
The new plan announced by Kindiki now signals a fresh attempt by the government to modernise the country’s main airport through a different approach. Whether the public will support this new direction remains to be seen, but the government insists that the project is necessary for Kenya’s future growth and international competitiveness.
