Excavation Work Underway for Sh9.4bn Konza University

Excavation work is underway for the proposed Kenya Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) in Konza City, setting the stage for the establishment of a world-class postgraduate studies university in Machakos County.

According to the contractor, BOMI E&C Consortium, the institute’s main building will be completed by June this year, ahead of a planned Presidential ground-breaking event.

Modelled on the Korean Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, a leading science and technology university in Korea, the university at Konza will consist of ten research laboratories that will be operated by local and international researchers.

“We want our KAIST to be a replica of the Korean one if not better and it will also be a centre of innovation for employment creation opportunities and further development as a country,” says Simon Nabukwesi, PS State Department for University Education and Research.

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The campus is expected to admit its first batch of Masters and PhD students in September, although the project is expected to be completed by the end of 2023.

Engineering technologies

The university that will occupy 36 acres of land is aimed to provide specialised research and training in engineering technologies to help Kenya fast-track its modernization agenda.

KAIST will create academic curricula for six initial departments – civil engineering, ICT engineering, Agricultural Biotechnology, mechanical engineering, chemical engineering, and electrical engineering – to boost engineering research education in the country.

The campus is expected to enhance science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses in Kenya’s institutes of higher education in the pursuit of creating a pool of experts to mechanize the local economy by 2030.

Infrastructure works

Meanwhile, the State – which is spending Sh40 billion to make the Konza Technopolis investor-ready – aims to complete the horizontal works for the city by December.

These works entail the construction of streetscapes, drainage works, and other key amenities to pave the way for vertical construction works by private investors.

John Tanui, CEO of Konza Technopolis Development Authority recently said the State agency has completed 70% of the work and is now focusing on the remaining works.

“In 2021, we recorded over 70% completion and our focus is to complete this as we accelerate investor’s uptake,” Eng. Tanui said during a recent investor’s tour of Konza.

Phase one of the Konza City project is designed as a mixed-use development, comprising residential, commercial, public, and hospitality amenities.

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