Kenya has awarded a USD 2.9 billion contract to China Communications Construction Co (CCCC) to expand and modernise Nairobi's Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA), marking a return to large-scale Chinese-backed infrastructure development nearly two years after the collapse of a proposed deal with India's Adani Group. The contract value is roughly 50 per cent higher than Adani Group's proposed airport concession, which was estimated at about USD 2 billion before being scrapped by President William Ruto's government in November 2024 amid political opposition, legal challenges and public scrutiny, sources said. Kenya had initially engaged with Adani for a few months on the project.