Eldoret has received a major boost in its step towards becoming Kenya’s fifth city as the Uasin Gishu county is expanding and modernizing its infrastructure.
The elevation has been approved by the senate and forwarded to the president William Ruto who will approve it in August.
Speaking at a public forum at the Municipal Hall the Eldoret Municipality manager Tito Koiyet said that as the town is eyeing city status the county government has urged property developers to adapt to modern state-of –the art commercial buildings.
“We have had a public forum with stakeholders of Eldoret to have a conversation on their participation on the implementation of an enforcement notice that was issued by the municipality in compliance with the requirement of various statues and laws which require building owners, and landlords to ensure their buildings are in compliance with the law to ascertain the safety of the residents,” he said.
He added that to improve the appearance of the town to make it look more beautiful and attractive for the residents and visitors there should be proper disposal of garbage from premises, clean up exercise for the streets, planting of trees, improving pavements, growing of flowers and improving of green spaces within town.
“The landlords have committed themselves to paint the buildings and ensure they have ramps to facilitate ease of entry into shops by people with disability and the aged so as to make the lives of the citizens when they are within the Central Business District (CBD) to be an enjoyable one,”
“We have discussed the participation of the private sector in the implementation of the Kenya Urban Support Program (KUSP) because the requirements of the program indicate that the private sector has a critical role to play in identifying and working with the government in the implementation of the projects that have been identified as required by Urban areas and Cities act that citizens should participate in the governance of urban areas,” he noted.
He affirmed that Uasin Gishu county governor Jonathan Bii is willing to work and collaborate with stakeholders of the town to ensure that they take part in the decision making and planning of activities including the project’s prioritization within the town.
“As you are aware Eldoret is facing challenges of flooding and we need to work with residents to address these challenges because they not only affect their livelihoods but also affect businesses directly or indirectly,” he noted.
By Judy Too
