Kenyan airport urged to increase efficiency

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta has directed the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) to improve the passenger capacity of the international arrivals terminal at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in the capital Nairobi.

Kenyatta's direction comes ahead of the Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) that will be held in Nairobi on July 25 to 26. The summit will be attended by world leaders, including the United States President Barack Obama and thousands of participants.

Kenyatta, who toured the terminal on Tuesday evening after arriving from South Africa where he attended the 25th African Union Summit, said the KAA should undertake all measures necessary to increase efficiency within the next two weeks.

Last month, Kenyatta launched a new prefabricated terminal at the JKIA to ease passenger congestion through additional capacity.

Kenyatta commissioned Terminal 2, which was constructed by a Chinese firm, in efforts towards expansion and modernization of the JKIA that will significantly alleviate traffic jams at the JKIA and deliver a better experience to passengers travelling through the airport.

The state-of-the-art prefabricated terminal has capacity to handle 2.5 million passengers annually. Its additional capacity brings the JKIA's total capacity to 7.5 million passengers annually, much more than the estimated 6.5 million passengers who go through the airport annually.

The expansion and modernization of the JKIA has been designated as a flagship project in Vision 2030, Kenya's long term economic development blueprint.

Launched in 2009, the GES brings together entrepreneurs and investors around the world annually to showcase innovative projects, exchange new ideas, and help spur economic opportunity.

The 2015 GES agenda will focus on generating new investments for entrepreneurs, with a particular focus on women and youth. Endi