Arusha-Tengeru highway construction begins

Part of the Arusha-Holili road project

After years of promises the Tanzanian National Roads Authority (Tanroads) has announced the start of construction on the 14.2 km Arusha-Tengeru section of the 240 km highway to the Tanzanian-Kenyan border at Holili-Taveta.

Much of the delay have been caused by legal proceedings over compensation payments (estimated to total about $10 million) to property holders along the route. The first section out of Arusha to the east should be finished in October 2016 but the Arusha bypass is still held up by compensation disputes.

Once the four-lane highway to Tengeru is completed the next section to be built will be from Tengeru to Kilimajaro International airport (about 20 km). After that it will be the nearly 100 km to the border.

The present cost of the Arusha-Holili-Taveta highway is estimated at $560 million.

The road is of vital importance to Tanzania because it is the main road from Arusha to the Kenyan port of Mombasa.