Ruto to issue nearly 200,000 title deeds as he begins Coast tour

NAIROBI, Kenya, Sep 25 – President William Ruto will begin a development tour of the Coast region on Saturday, during which he is expected to issue nearly 200,000 title deeds and break ground for the Sh2.2 trillion East Africa Refinery in Lamu.

The tour will cover Taita-Taveta, Kwale, Kilifi, Mombasa, Tana River and Lamu counties, with the President expected to inspect ongoing Government projects, commission completed projects and launch new developments.

According to State House, Ruto will begin the tour in Taita-Taveta, where he is scheduled to issue 31,318 title deeds to beneficiaries in Mwatate and Voi constituencies.

He will proceed to Kwale on Monday, where 94,175 title deeds are expected to be issued to residents of Lunga Lunga, Msambweni and Kinango constituencies.

In Kilifi, 36,826 title deeds will be distributed to beneficiaries in Kaloleni, Rabai, Ganze, Kilifi South and Malindi constituencies.

A further 4,360 title deeds will be issued in Mombasa, while 22,770 title deeds will be distributed in Lamu and Tana River counties.

The combined figure is 189,439 title deeds across the six counties.

The issuance is part of the Government’s wider plan to distribute 500,000 land ownership documents in the Coast region as it seeks to address longstanding squatter and land ownership challenges.

The title deeds are expected to give beneficiaries formal documentation of land ownership and enable them to make greater use of their land for economic activities.

For communities that have waited for years for formal documentation, the programme is also intended to provide greater certainty over land ownership and help address historical land administration challenges.

A key highlight of the Coast tour will be the groundbreaking of the East Africa Refinery in Lamu, a proposed multibillion-dollar project backed by Nigerian industrialist Aliko Dangote and other partners.

Ruto is expected to lead the groundbreaking ceremony on September 30, following recent discussions with Dangote and Africa Finance Corporation CEO Samaila Zubairu on financing and preparations for the project.

The refinery is designed to have a processing capacity of 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day and is projected to serve petroleum markets across East and Central Africa.

The project has been variously reported at between $15 billion and $17 billion, with the Kenyan Government commonly citing a figure of about Sh2.2 trillion ($17 billion).

The Government says the refinery is expected to strengthen regional energy security, support industrialisation and create employment and business opportunities in Lamu and the wider Coast region.

Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has said the project could create more than 60,000 jobs, while preparations for the September 30 groundbreaking have been underway in Lamu.

The refinery is also expected to process crude from Kenya’s Turkana oil fields as the country develops its petroleum industry.

During the tour, Ruto is also expected to assess the progress of Government programmes across the six counties while engaging residents and local leaders on development priorities.

The Government has linked the Coast tour to efforts to address longstanding land ownership challenges while accelerating infrastructure, energy and other development projects in the region.

The planned Lamu refinery is expected to form part of a wider energy and industrial hub around the Lamu Port and the LAPSSET corridor, with the project also targeting regional petroleum markets.