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Reuben Mwambingu @reubenmwambingu

That the once isolated Lamu archipelago could change into an economic hub linking Kenya to the rest of the continent is a dream that has come to pass.

When former President Mwai Kibaki presided over the much-anticipated and often delayed ground-breaking ceremony for construction of the Lamu port in Kilana village in 2012, the interior Manda Bay where the new port currently sits was still covered by mangrove and doubting Thomases were many.

Now expectations are high that the project will result to a big payoff, create thousands of jobs, open up the region, thereby unlocking th county’s economic potential and turn around the fortunes of residents.

“We never imagined that this place could change to this level. No one could believe but now even the critics have started believing the story of development in Lamu can be true,” Governor Fahim Twaha said during the launch, adding that the new development will rejuvenate the economy of the area.

Kenya expects to complete the construction of the port in October and plans to invite leaders from neighbouring states to show them its potential and negotiate deals for their respective countries.

This will be the defining moment in the greater plans of the project which includes the expanded Lamu Port South Sudan Ethiopia Transport (Lapsset) corridor project.

It remains to be seen whether investors and the regional players will come to the table for the sake of the regional expansion.

But things are already looking up for area residents who have already started smelling the coffee. 

For Salma Hamida 26, the operationalisation of Lamu Port is surreal. She is among a hundred new employees at Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) having been drawn from Lamu County after a recent orientation at the Port of Mombasa.

Hamida narrates how she embarked on her ambitious journey to position herself for potential job opportunities shortly after reports of the Lamu Port project started becoming a reality. 

She says she put all effort in her education purposely to ensure  she does not miss out when opportunities arise.

“When reports of the port project first came, I was still in Mokowe Secondary School. At the time the idea of a port in Lamu didn’t seem real because the proposed site was just a thicket of mangrove cover.

Very few imagined the idea of Lamu port becoming a reality,” explains the mother of two.

Window of opportunity

But for Hamida, she had seen a window of opportunity and she was keen to grab it and run away with it.

“I decided to study for a certificate in office administration and then advanced with a diploma in procurement. We went for interviews in 2019 and I presented my documents.

Today I am so happy to have been employed,” she told  Business Hub in Lamu. She was employed as a clerk at the Lamu port. 

However, Mohamed Jilo, a resident of Hindi says more residents should be given opportunities to work at the new port.

“Most of those who work here are people transferred from Mombasa port and other areas.

The real residents have been left out but there is still room to accommodate more because the project is big and has just begun,” he adds.

Isaack Kipruto another Hindi resident observes that the project has made many millionaires through compensation even though some of the beneficiaries appear to have squandered the cash.

Also rubbing their hands with glee as they await compensation  are 4,700 fishermen who have been displaced by the project.

 Mohamed Buno, a resident of Pate Island says 70 per cent of Lamu residents rely on fishing and it is therefore important for the fisher folks to get their compensation on time.

“The coming of Lamu port has seen most fishing grounds destroyed and now fishermen have no source of livelihoods,” he states .