The Nyaribo Airstrip VIP Lounge in Nyeri county is expected to be completed before July.
The Sh40 million project was started in November last year and is ongoing. The Lounge is being done by Ongata Works Limited. The facility’s 1.2km runway has already been renovated.
Regional airport manager in charge of Wilson and Northern region Joseph Okumu on Tuesday said the upgrade of the 190-acre airstrip will be a continuous process involving different phases.
“We expect many other projects to come up because many projects, especially airport projects, are always done in phases,” he said.
Okumu spoke when he visited the airstrip to assess the progress of the works. He was accompanied by other Kenya Airports Authority officials, Nyeri Town MP Ngunjiri Wambugu and deputy county commissioner Joseph Mwangi.
He said the improvement of the airstrip has seen flights by training schools increase while some investors are applying to put up hangars at the facility.
“Actually, there is a lot going on as we speak. What they are waiting for is only the completion of this particular VIP lounge so that it can also be used for the facilitation of general aviation and other commercial flights,” Okumu said.
Currently, the airstrip is used by about 10 planes daily. They include training and chartered planes. The groundbreaking ceremony for the project was done by President Uhuru Kenyatta in November 2018.
MP Wambugu said the improvement will create an enabling environment for economic growth in the area. Private investors are expected to start streaming in to put up hangars, maintenance areas and fuelling stations, among other facilities.
“What happens is that when those things start happening, planes’ owners will start coming here for maintenance and fuelling, and support services like taxis will also be made available,” he said.
The completion of the modern clearing area will make the airstrip busy and greatly prompt investors to move easily between Nairobi and Nyeri, the lawmaker said. It takes 20 minutes to fly from Nyeri to Nairobi.
“The environment is getting ready for an airport,” Wambugu said, adding that 21 hotels already operate around the airstrip.
He also cited its proximity to the Dedan Kimathi University of Technology where investors have been setting up their workshops. The university is set to start exporting software to Japan.
Wambugu said the value of land around the area is also appreciating and the government has tarmacked the road nearby. He said the siting of divisional headquarters at Nyaribo and the posting of an assistant county commissioner will help improve security in the area.
Deputy county commissioner Mwangi said once the terminal is completed, armed police officers will be attached to the airstrip to provide security.
“Once the VIP lounge is completed, we are going to deploy armed security officers who will be guarding this place. They will also be patrolling around the airstrip to maximise security,” he said, adding that this will boost confidence among investors and tourists using the facility.