Privatisation could turn around port of Mombasa fortunes

Kenya: The search mounted by the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) last month, for a private sector player, to operate the first phase of the Sh27 billion second container terminal at the Port of Mombasa, could be a game changer. This is if it is handled transparently and the contract awarded to the most competitive bidder.

No vested local or national interests should interfere with the bidding process. The mandarins at Harambee House and their friends in Parliament, who have often been accused of interfering with the tendering process leading to the awarding of contracts to shadowy briefcase companies with no capacity to deliver, should be warned to keep off the goings on at Mombasa Port.