Kisumu — The Kenya Defence Forces will hand over the Sh2.4 billion MV Uhuru II to Kenya Railways Corporation in Kisumu on Thursday.
Kenya Shipyards Limited (KSL), a state-owned corporation, commenced the construction of MV Uhuru II in June 2021. President William Ruto commissioned the vessel operating in Lake Victoria in October 2023.
Cabinet Secretary for Defence Soipan Tuya and her Roads counterpart Davis Chirchir will grace the event at the KSL facility along the Lake Victoria shores.
The government undertook the construction of the 100-metre-long vessel to complement MV Uhuru I and meet the rising demand for transportation of goods within the Lake Victoria region.
The milestone has position the country as a shipbuilding and repair destination in the East Africa region.
The transfer will open up many job opportunities for locals at the Port as the vessel will be transporting goods to the neighboring countries of Uganda and Tanzania.
The construction of the vessel underscored Kenya Shipyards' ability to build, repair, and maintain ships for the local and regional markets.
The revival of Kenya's maritime transport and logistics sector through shipbuilding augments the Bottom Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA) of the Kenya Kwanza government.
MV Uhuru I, built in 1965, resumed operation after her successful rehabilitation by the Kenya Defence Forces in 2019 with a capacity to carry 1,260 tonnes of cargo.
MV Uhuru II, capable of transporting 1,063 metric tonnes of cargo, is optimized for the transportation of petroleum oil products as well as cereals, fertilisers, sugar, and seeds.
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