Nairobi News

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Brace for traffic gridlocks as city hosts Tokyo summit


Roads in the city centre will be closed for five days beginning Thursday next week as the city hosts the sixth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD VI) summit.

At least four major roads will be closed and security heightened during the summit expected to be attended by  35 heads of state from across Africa.

President Uhuru Kenyatta will co-host the summit with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

According to the summit’s programme, Parliament Road, Taifa Road, City Hall Way and parts of Harambee Avenue will be off-limits from August 25th to 29th.

One of the areas to be mostly affected will be the busy Kencom bus terminal.

“From 24th midnight to 29th evening designated parking will be provided for every category of participants and gates for VIPs will be different from ordinary delegates,” Mr Amos Gathecha, the head of security logistics for TICAD VI summit said.

OFFICIAL ACCREDITATION

Only cars and authorized personnel with official accreditation will be allowed in these areas

He added that, Uhuru Park will be used as the assembly point in case of emergency.

According to Foreign Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed, 4,000 Japanese delegates have confirmed attendance and 100 Japanese companies have also confirmed they will exhibiting at the event.

In total, the government expects approximately 10,000 visitors for the Summit.

All hotels where delegates will be staying will be guarded by police and day visits to those hotels may be interrupted. At least 67 hotels in and around Nairobi have been booked for the event.

CS Mohamed added that the government had spent Sh500 million to hos the summit with the support of Jica, UNDP and AU Commission.

The Japanese government has given Kenya police 15 patrol cars to be used during the summit.