President William Ruto told school leaders in Mombasa that the 482‑kilometre Nairobi‑Mombasa Highway will be upgraded to a dual carriageway within the next 12 months.

The pledge was delivered at the Kenya Comprehensive Schools Heads Association Annual General Meeting and Conference in Nyali, Mombasa, on Thursday, 12 November.

Ruto stressed that the project will be funded through "innovative and creative" financing mechanisms, explicitly ruling out any new taxes or additional borrowing.

He did not disclose the projected cost, which sections will be prioritised, or the exact date construction will commence.

A full public briefing on the project's specifics is promised in due course, according to the president.

The Nairobi‑Mombasa Highway, designated as the A8, forms the core of the Northern Corridor, linking the Port of Mombasa to the capital and serving as the main freight route for landlocked East African neighbours.

Despite the parallel Standard Gauge Railway, the existing two‑lane road suffers from heavy‑truck congestion, safety hazards and logistical bottlenecks that raise transit times and transport costs across the region.

Upgrading the corridor to a multi‑lane dual carriageway has long been viewed as essential to improving trade efficiency for Kenya and its neighbours.