Mining CS Dan Kazungu is shown a map of the airport expansion plan by Malindi International Airport Manager Walter Agong. [Photo/the-star.co.ke]The government has already paid Sh300 million to landowners for the 25 hectares of land acquired for the expansion of the Malindi Airport.Malindi Airport Manager Walter Agong said the Kenya Airport Authority has paid Sh300 million to the first group at Kwa Chocha South to pave way for the infrastructure upgrade.Speaking in his office on Wednesday, Mr Agong said the compensation process was transparent and accountable, adding that the authority has set aside Sh200 million which will be used to pay the remaining residents before December.“We have compensated the first batch of people who are in the process of vacating at a cost of Sh300 million. By the end of December we shall be done with the compensation which will have cost Sh420 million,” said Agong. “We already mapped the area for expansion of the runway. The dream of making Malindi an international airport is real now we have a new apron which is 99 percent complete and will be ready in December to accommodate three code 4 C airplanes or four Boeing 737,” he added, as quoted by The Star.The government has set aside Sh1.5 billion for the project which seeks to extend the Malindi Airport Runway from the current 1.4 kilometres to 2.5 kilometres.Mining CS Dan Kazungu who had paid Agong a courtesy call said completion of the airport upgrade will improve the economy of the Coast region due to increased tourism.“The airport will be the fulcrum of Malindi transformation. As leaders we must push to ensure it becomes a reality,” said Kazungu.

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