President William Ruto has announced plans to launch the long-awaited 500-kilometre Lake Victoria Ring Road before the end of 2026, putting the major transport project among the government’s key plans to open up western Kenya and improve movement around the Lake Victoria region.
Ruto said the road would connect several counties around the lake and form part of a wider infrastructure programme aimed at improving transport in areas that have for years faced poor road networks.
“And for your information, we will be launching the 500-kilometer Legacy Lake Victoria Ring Road before the end of this year. From the shores of Lake Victoria to the borders of Somalia, we are opening up Kenya,” Ruto said.
The President spoke on Wednesday during the dedication and handover ceremony of the Raila Odinga Mausoleum in Bondo, Siaya County, where he outlined a number of road and railway projects planned for the region and other parts of the country.
Government plans released in September show that work on the 500-kilometre corridor is expected to begin in November 2026.
The road will run from Busia through Siaya, Kisumu and Homa Bay before reaching Muhuru Bay in Migori County. The government says the corridor will make it easier for people, agricultural products and other goods to move between communities and economic centres within the Lake Victoria Basin.
The planned road network has also seen changes in scope. In June, Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi said the corridor could increase to about 612 kilometres after the proposed 112-kilometre Kisumu-Busia Highway was brought into the plan.
The expanded network is expected to improve links with the Northern Corridor while making it easier for Kenya to trade with Uganda and other countries in the wider Great Lakes region.
Ruto said the Lake Victoria Ring Road was part of a wider effort by his administration to expand transport infrastructure across the country. He connected the programme to Raila Odinga’s long-standing call for better roads and railway networks to link communities that had remained poorly connected.
The President also pointed to the ongoing development of the Standard Gauge Railway from Naivasha to Kisumu and eventually to Malaba.
The Naivasha-Kisumu section covers 264 kilometres, while the Kisumu-Malaba section is 107 kilometres. The railway corridor passes through nine counties, including Siaya, with construction of the Naivasha-Kisumu section officially starting in July 2026.
“We are building the standard gauge railway from Naivasha to Kisumu and on to Malaba. That line will pass right here through Siaya, with a station in Yala. We're building the road from Isiolo all the way to Mandera, and another 6,000-plus kilometres of tarmac in every part of Kenya,” Ruto said.
The government has also set aside Sh32 billion for road development in Siaya, with plans to construct about 400 kilometres of new roads.
Among the roads included in the programme are the Kodiaga-Rabango-Awelo-Ogam-Nyamonye route and other roads targeting better access to markets, beaches and economic centres across the county.
At the national level, the administration has announced a 10-year roads and transport programme that targets 2,500 kilometres of highway dualing and 28,000 kilometres of new tarmac roads.
The government has placed the estimated cost of the wider infrastructure programme at about Sh5 trillion, with financing expected to come through the National Infrastructure Fund and public-private partnerships.
Government delivery data shows that more than 2,669 kilometres of roads have been completed since September 2022, while more than 6,000 kilometres are currently under construction.
Ruto said the infrastructure projects were in line with what he described as Raila’s vision of equitable development, arguing that roads should do more than connect major towns and cities by also reaching communities that have been left behind.
“Every road we open in a forgotten region advances the transformation of our country, and every such road is a tribute to the legacy of Raila Odinga.”
The Lake Victoria Ring Road is expected to improve access to areas involved in agriculture, fishing, tourism and trade by linking communities around the lake with markets and other economic centres.
The government has also tied the project to efforts to grow the region’s blue economy and improve cross-border trade.
Ruto said the wider infrastructure programme would help bring different parts of the country closer together economically while advancing what he described as Raila’s commitment to connecting Kenya’s regions.