The Government of Kenya, through the Kenya Rural Roads Authority (KeRRA), is implementing the Arid and Semi-Arid Land (ASAL) Rural Roads Project in partnership with the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) and the European Union (EU). This project is currently underway in six counties: Marsabit, Samburu, Isiolo, Laikipia, Meru, and Tharaka-Nithi. The ASAL project aims to boost community resilience to drought and other other effects of climate change by facilitating access to local socio-economic centres to the main road networks in these regions. At the heart of the project is capacity building to strengthen the technical and managerial capacities of County Government Roads department staff and local contractors for the six regions through training.

The Private sector participation is also crucial and therefore the project aims to develop their capacities in road rehabilitation and maintenance works using the Local Resource Based Approaches as given in the Roads 2000 Strategic Plan. This not only ensures cost-effective project delivery but also promotes local employment and ownership of the infrastructure. This training is part of an annual programme funded by KeRRA and is largely delivered in Isiolo County, except where specialized equipment requires alternative locations.

Kenya Institute of Highways and Building Technology (KIHBT) is playing a central role in this initiative as the project’s designated technical training provider as it is responsible for equipping County Government Roads Department staff, KeRRA supervisory teams, and local contractors with technical knowledge and skills on labour-based road construction and maintenance procedures.

The ASAL project features a 3-year training programme designed to build local capacity in key areas of road infrastructure management. The programme aims to train a total of 1,124 participants, focusing primarily on contract management and administration teams, as well as contractors and site supervisors. This targeted training is expected to enhance the efficiency, quality, and sustainability of rural road works across the six ASAL counties.

By Beatrice Njenga, Communication Specialist for EASTIP at Kenya Institute of Highways and Building Technology