K26mil for work on airports

THE National Airports Corporation (NAC) has signed contracts worth K26 million with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for maintenance work on 22 national airports.
Several contracts were signed recently by NAC’s acting managing director and chief executive officer Rex Kiponge and NAC board chairperson Rowland Abaijah.
Kiponge said this would utilise available funds under the existing ADB civil aviation development investment programme (Cadip) loan arrangements.
There will be 46 maintenance projects.
“There are currently 25 projects running under the existing ADB-Cadip loan arrangements,” Kiponge said.
“The additional 46 has now brought the total number of projects for maintenance alone to 71.
He said the 46 projects included installation of fire alarm systems, installation and maintenance of air conditioning systems, procurement and installation of new X-Ray screening machines, general maintenance of terminal facilities, and others.
“Some of these projects were not been implemented earlier due to cashflow challenges that the NAC was facing because of unpaid revenue owed to it by stakeholders as a result of the impact of the Coronavirus (Covid-19) on business,” he said.
Kiponge said Cadip was an ongoing investment in the country’s aviation sector, the largest undertaken by the Government with support from the ADB and implemented by the NAC.
“Cadip was initiated in 2009 at a cost of K1.67 billion. This 10-year programme is funded by the ADB multi-tranche financing facility (MFF) loan of K1.4 billion and Government counterpart funding of K221 million,” he said.
Kiponge said the purpose of Cadip was to redevelop and revitalise the nation’s aging aviation infrastructure and to ensure operational safety and security compliance to aviation standards.