Handshake between Ethiopia and Eritrea not going to kill LAPSSET project, says director :: Kenya

LAPSSETT Director General Silvester Kasuku rejected claims that the Lamu port project would be rendered obsolete by the new friendship between Ethiopia and Eritrea.

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Some badysts claim that the thaw in relations between the two nations will allow Ethiopia to use the Assab and Mbadawa ports of the island. Eritrea and thus diminish the interest of Addis Ababa for the port of Lamu to build. In addition to the Eritrean ports, Ethiopia also has the opportunity to use the ports of Djibouti City in Djibouti and Hargeisa in Somaliland.

It is also believed that South Sudan is also studying the possible use of Eritrea's ports across Ethiopia, which is of concern to the Kenyan authorities. Uganda, the main importer of the port of Mombasa, is seeking to diversify its options in Tanzania.

But on Thursday, Kasuku argued that despite the reconciliation between Eritrea and Ethiopia, the latter still needs the proposed Lamu port. He says the project has been designed with many beneficiaries and intentions for the future beyond Eritrea and Ethiopia.

Kasuku said that Kenya would continue to move forward despite the pessimism aroused by some observers on the Lamu port project.

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"You have to understand that the Ethiopian market, especially in its southern region, is huge, and that is the market that Lamu port has always aimed for," said the LAPSSET official.

He added that southern Ethiopia, with its population of 50 million, would be better served by Lamu Port compared to the Eritrean port or Djibouti that Ethiopia is using currently.

He also stated that the LAPSSET project is intended to open the Northern Corridor which includes northern Kenya and partly southern Sudan for whom the project is invaluable.

"The Lamu Port Project is a regionally accepted project whose purpose is to connect East African countries with trade and logistics," Kasuku noted.

The handshake between Ethiopia and Eritrea makes the Lapsset obsolete

He noted that the maritime sector and logistics were developing in the region and that the region would be served if the region was serviced by fewer ports.