Kenya Urban Mobility Improvement Project (WB-P515393)

Regions
  • Africa
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Countries
  • Kenya
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Specific Location
Nairobi Metropolitan Area
Whenever identified, the area within countries where the impacts of the investment may be experienced. Exact locations of projects may not be identified fully or at all in project documents. Please review updated project documents and community-led assessments.
Financial Institutions
  • World Bank (WB)
International, regional and national development finance institutions. Many of these banks have a public interest mission, such as poverty reduction.
Project Status
Proposed
Stage of the project cycle. Stages vary by development bank and can include: pending, approval, implementation, and closed or completed.
Bank Risk Rating
A
Environmental and social categorization assessed by the development bank as a measure of the planned project’s environmental and social impacts. A higher risk rating may require more due diligence to limit or avoid harm to people and the environment. For example, "A" or "B" are risk categories where "A" represents the highest amount of risk. Results will include projects that specifically recorded a rating, all other projects are marked ‘U’ for "Undisclosed."
Voting Date
Dec 10, 2026
Date when project documentation and funding is reviewed by the Board for consideration and approval. Some development banks will state a "board date" or "decision date." When funding approval is obtained, the legal documents are accepted and signed, the implementation phase begins.
Borrower
Government of Kenya - Kenya Railways; Ministry of Roads and Transport
A public entity (government or state-owned) provided with funds or financial support to manage and/or implement a project.
Sectors
  • Transport
The service or industry focus of the investment. A project can have several sectors.
Investment Type(s)
Grant, Loan
The categories of the bank investment: loan, grant, guarantee, technical assistance, advisory services, equity and fund.
Loan Amount (USD)
$ 500.00 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Grant Amount (USD)
$ 1,000.00 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Project Cost (USD)
$ 1,501.25 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Bank Documents
Other Related Projects
Primary Source

Original disclosure @ WB website

Updated in EWS Aug 25, 2026

Disclosed by Bank Mar 3, 2026

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Contact the EWS Team

Project Description
If provided by the financial institution, the Early Warning System Team writes a short summary describing the purported development objective of the project and project components. Review the complete project documentation for a detailed description.

According to the Bank’s website, the objective of this project is to improve selected commuter rail corridors in the Nairobi Metropolitan Area to support spatial transformation, improved mobility and safety, and large-scale job creation.

The project aims to transform the Nairobi Metropolitan Area (NMA) mobility landscape by upgrading the commuter rail into a modern urban rail system, reforming the institutional framework for urban transport, and supporting integrated land-use planning around stations with the following components and activities.

Component 1: Urban Mobility Improvement in Nairobi Metropolitan AreaThis component supports the transformation of the 57 km Nairobi Central-Thika commuter rail into a modern, high-capacity urban rail system.
Subcomponent 1.1: Upgrading Commuter Rail into Urban MetroIncludes the following: feasibility and basic design, including electrification readiness;Development of urban rail design and operational standards (gender-responsive, resilient, universally accessible);Track, signaling, telecom, and station upgrades; Modernization of stations; multimodal interchanges, and station utilities; Establishment of metro maintenance facilities; Implementation of KRC's integrated ERP system for operations and customer service.; Technical assistance for integrating feeder bus services; Implementation of Resettlement Action Plans.
Subcomponent 1.2: Green Mobility Solutionsincludes: Procurement of DEMU trainsets and roadmap for transition to EMUs; Development of a national railway electrification strategy.Support to operationalization of Kenya's e-mobility policy; Technical assistance for carbon financing opportunities.citeturn1search1L1.2 section
Subcomponent 1.3: Kenya Integrated Automated Fare Collection System (KIAFCS) - Phase 1 includes: Establish national standards, regulations, and policy framework for the integrated fare collection system; Deployment of system infrastructure along the Nairobi-Thika corridor; Support to KRC as the early adopter; Development of national scale-up plan.

Component 2: Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Along Commuter Rail Supports integrated land-use planning and urban regeneration around selected stations through: Corridor-level TOD plan and station-area land-use plans (500 m radius); Implementation of TOD at approximately seven stations, including anchor public facilities; Access improvements within 1 km (and up to 3 km for major roads), including pedestrian and cycling infrastructure, lighting, drainage, and landscaping; Development of KRC land value capture strategy to attract private sector investment.

Component 3: Institutional Strengthening for Urban Mobility SolutionsSupports enabling policy and institutional reforms needed for sustainable urban transport: Development and implementation of National Urban Transport Policy; Establishment of urban mobility funding mechanisms (including potential securitization of the Railway Development Levy) ; Support for sustainable urban mobility plan and integrated public transport network for NMA; Support to reform KRC structure, including creation of metro and land subsidiaries; Development of national TOD policy and guidelines; Establishment of Transport Center at the University of Nairobi (master's program in urban transport).Capacity building in road safety, gender-responsive planning, PPPs, and preparation for future projects.

Component 4: Contingent Emergency Response Component (CERC)

Early Warning System Project Analysis
For a project with severe or irreversible impacts to local community and natural resources, the Early Warning System Team may conduct a thorough analysis regarding its potential impacts to human and environmental rights.

Environmental and Social Risk: High

The Project will finance the following Project components: Component 1. Urban Mobility Improvement in Nairobi Metropolitan Area. These activities are likely to result in potential adverse environmental, health, and safety (EHS) risks and impacts that include; vegetation clearance and soil erosion, air pollution, noise and vibration impacts, vehicle, trai and truck accidents, non-hazardous and hazardous waste, fuel contamination, community/occupational health and safety risks and impacts (CHS/OHS) , cumulative impacts, wastewater discharges, loss/change of land use, use of herbicides for vegetation clearance and impacts on flora and fauna. The cumulative impacts include labor influx, gentrification, increased noise and vibrations for residents and institutions adjacent to the railway network, fragmentation of the landscape, improved traffic flow, transport cost increases and access to transportation for the poorest groups in the city, impacts on encroachers and overall displacement of non-motorized users, street vendors, and informal businesses and dwellers as the transport infrastructure becomes more formal and commercial.

Project social risks both direct, indirect and cumulative negative social risks and impacts will include: (i) infringement of labor rights and standards on employment on project workers, (ii) in-migration/influx of labor and/or people, (iii) access and inclusion for vulnerable groups/persons living with disability and women, (iv) impacts on public health, HIV/AIDS and STIs, (v) noise and vibration of machine operations during construction and movement of trains at operation phase will generate some level of noise pollution and vibrations that might affect learning and religious worship institutions, and integrity of buildings located in close proximity to the railway tracks, (vi) Workers safety and health issue, (vii) poor stakeholders engagement and lack of a clear communication plan , (viii) risk of conflict between contractor and the community, (ix) traffic inconveniences and related accidents, (x) the Central Railway Station, a transit hub, will have an increase in the volume of trains and passengers thus increase the noise levels at the station which are a nuisance to the passengers and workers; (xi) increase crime rates within the transport system, (xv) impacts on building and railway equipment and trains with historic value; though not significant, it may have impact on livelihood of communities. The project will manage legacy issues related to encroachment to the rail reserve. These project activities are likely to result in downstream adverse environmental and social impacts.

Investment Description
Here you can find a list of individual development financial institutions that finance the project.

Total Project Cost: US$ 1501.25 million
IBRD Commitment: US$ 500.00 million
Grant Amount: US$ 1,000.00 million


Contact Information
This section aims to support the local communities and local CSO to get to know which stakeholders are involved in a project with their roles and responsibilities. If available, there may be a complaint office for the respective bank which operates independently to receive and determine violations in policy and practice. Independent Accountability Mechanisms receive and respond to complaints. Most Independent Accountability Mechanisms offer two functions for addressing complaints: dispute resolution and compliance review.

CONTACT POINT - World Bank

Task Team Leader: Akiko Kishiue
Title: Senior Urban Transport Specialist
Email: akishiue@worldbank.org

TTL Contact: Zaruhi Tokhmakhyan
Job Title: Senior Urban Specialist
Email: Ztokhmakhian@worldbank.org

TTL Contact: Josphat O. Sasia
Job Title: Lead Transport Specialist
Email: Jsasia@worldbank.org

ACCESS TO INFORMATION

To submit an information request for project information, you will have to create an account to access the Access to Information request form. You can learn more about this process at: https://www.worldbank.org/en/access-to-information/request-submission

ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF THE WORLD BANK

The World Bank Inspection Panel is the independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who believe they are likely to be, or have been, adversely affected by a World Bank-financed project. If you submit a complaint to the Inspection Panel, they may investigate to assess whether the World Bank is following its own policies and procedures for preventing harm to people or the environment. You can contact the Inspection Panel or submit a complaint by emailing ipanel@worldbank.org. Information on how to file a complaint and a complaint request form are available at: https://www.inspectionpanel.org/how-to-file-complaint

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How it works