The Italian community, and with it the tour operators promoting the tourist destinations of Watamu and Malindi, are very interested in the development of the Malindi International Airport, and never before has the Italian government been on the same wavelength, both in view of the initiatives of the Mattei Plan for Africa launched by the Meloni government, of which Kenya appears to be one of the pilot countries, as well as the excellent bilateral relations between the two states, growing from the visit of the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella in March 2023, to William Ruto's participation in the Italy-Africa meeting in Rome and later as a guest at the G7 organised by Italy in Puglia.
About this and other interesting opportunities, the Italian Ambassador to Kenya Roberto Natali discussed with the Minister of Transport and Roads, Davis Chirchir, yesterday in Nairobi.
It was a meeting, in the presence of Watamu and Malindi MPs Owen Baya and Amina Mnyazi, in which the situation was taken stock of and the Italian government's potential interest in collaborating and involving private companies in the expansion and adaptation of the international airport and its facilities was reiterated.
But that's not all, Natali also dwelt on other infrastructures that should be implemented alongside the airport.
‘The development of the airport,’ Natali told us, ‘is also fundamental in fostering an ancillary industry that can provide more work and employment for many Kenyans in the area and promote not only the tourism sector in Malindi and Watamu, but also international destinations in the hinterland, such as the nearby Tsavo National Park.
The infrastructure projects, some already in place that are only awaiting completion, should go hand in hand with the expansion of the airport and the long-standing issue of land acquisition to lengthen the runway, with associated compensation to the rightful owners, as MP Baya also pointed out on his social profiles.
‘We had fruitful talks with Minister Chirchir and Italian Ambassador Natali on four issues,’ Baya wrote, ’the funding for the Malindi airport, the funding for the roads between Gede and Kakuyuni and between Jacaranda and Casuarina and other funding for the rural roads (KURA) in Malindi and Watamu.
Natali also addressed other discussions, with the Minister of Transport and his deputy, Mohamed Daghar, regarding the safety of tourists' means of transport, particularly those on safari, and asked the ministry to draw up an economic study to understand the real costs of bringing Malindi airport up to international standards, to land Boeing 747s, for example, and to allow the Italian government to understand in what form and how the public and private sectors could possibly collaborate.
(Photo: Facebook)