The Nairobi Railway City project is being built by Chinese contractor but Britain is helping to provide the funding
3-MIN READ3-MIN ListenJevans NyabiagePublished: 6:00pm, 11 Apr 2026Updated: 6:03pm, 11 Apr 2026Western governments and financiers increasingly avoid infrastructure projects that involve a Chinese presence as their geopolitical and economic rivalries intensify.Yet the Nairobi Railway City project stands as a rare exception. It combines British financing with Chinese construction and labour to build a major new public transport hub in the Kenyan capital.
At the heart of the project is the proposed new Central station and a 172-hectare (425-acre) district that includes new businesses, homes and an industrial zone.
The plan is designed to plug into the city’s existing and future transport networks and was modelled on the King’s Cross multimodal transport hub in London.
The Kenyan government and Kenya Railways are leading the procurement process, with Britain providing technical advice and exploring financing through UK Export Finance (UKEF).
Under this arrangement, architects AtkinsRealis handled the design, but the construction will be carried out by Chinese contractors.
