Despite being a main seaport in East Africa, Mombasa had long lacked large and medium-sized shipyards built and operated independently. The new shipyard is affiliated to Kenya Shipyards Limited (KSL) and has four main workshops responsible for electronic repair, engineering loading and unloading, parts maintenance and hull structure integration respectively. The slipway can handle ships with displacement of more than 4000 tons and length of 150 meters.

According to Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute, the new Mombasa shipyard will not only conduct the business of design and building of new ships, but also provide professional services, such as ship repair and reassembly, to promote the development of fishing, mining, aquaculture, tourism and other fields, which will accelerate the expansion of Kenya’s fishery industry from rivers and lakes to the ocean as well as the development of blue economy. Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta said that the shipyard will become “a cornerstone” of Kenya’s development of blue economy.

With a coastline of about 640 kilometers, Kenya is rich in marine natural resources. In 2017, the Kenyan government established the President’s Working Group on Blue Economy, which set the targets of using marine resources to promote sustainable economic development, create more jobs, and maintain a sound marine ecosystem. Priority areas for the development of blue economy include ports, shipping, marine fishing, aquaculture, marine tourism, marine biotechnology, etc.

To strengthen the international competitiveness of ports, Kenya is striving to expand and renovate existing port facilities. The Lamu Port under construction, as an important part of the “Lamu Port-South Sudan-Ethiopia Transport Corridor” project, will contribute to the construction of East Africa’s transportation network, as well as economic and trade exchanges. The Kenyan government has continuously strengthened the protection of coastal ecosystems, improved infrastructure construction, and encouraged the development of marine tourism industry. In addition, Kenya has actively invested in marine education and training and established Kisumu Maritime Center to strengthen marine scientific research and expand maritime human resources. Relevant statistics show that after nearly five years of development, the output value of blue economy-related industries in Kenya has seen its proportion in the national economy rise from less than 1% to 4%..

In a research report on blue economy in East Africa, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) affirmed the Kenyan government’s investment and effectiveness in blue economy in recent years, and suggested that Kenyan relevant parties should consolidate the evaluation work, fully tap the potential of blue economy, and increase the confidence of investors from all sides to nurture a new engine for blue economy.

Source: People's Daily