The County Government of Kakamega will undertake a programme of upgrading houses in slum areas of Kakamega, Mumias town and other municipalities in addition to the affordable housing programme.
The County Executive Committee Member (CECM) for Lands, Housing, Urban areas and Physical Planning Peninah Mukabane said the county government will utilize Appropriate or Alternative Building Material Technology (ABMT) and Interlocking Stabilized Soil Blocks Technology (ISSBT) in the project.
“Although we have improved infrastructure in terms of roads, electricity and water in the informal settlements through the World Bank, the houses are still pathetic. You will still find mud houses, houses with very old corrugated iron sheets and we don’t want that kind of picture within the Municipality,” she noted.
The program will start with the slums of Maraba, Masingo, Mudiri and Amalemba before extending to other slum areas in other towns and municipalities.
The CECM was speaking during the Kakamega Real Estate Breakfast meeting bringing together players in the Real Estate Themed Leveraging Affordable Housing Opportunities.
Kakamega is a rapidly growing town with an urban population of about 207, 885, which has put pressure on the housing units. The town has a deficit of 5000 housing units.
Equally, Masinde Muliro University, which is located on the outskirts of the town, is grappling with lack of enough accommodation space for its 16 000 students who seek decent and affordable houses.
In this regard, the County government has donated 34 acres owned by Approved school to the University to construct 10 000-unit hostels.
The County government has also identified five acres of land at Mumias Triangle for construction of 5,000 affordable housing units and another land at Mudiri for 1,000 units to benefit Civil servants under Civil Servant Housing Scheme.
With about 25 investors expressing interest in the affordable housing programme, the county government is further spearheading repossession of undeveloped plots in towns to be awarded to developers who have capacity.
“We are in phase two of repossessing undeveloped plots. We will be advertising for about 60 repossessed plots in Mumias to willing developers who have the muscle to develop them within a period of two years,” the CEC said.
According to the Kakamega County Investment and Development Agency(KCIDA) Chief Executive Officer Elizabeth Asichi, Kenya has a housing deficit of over 2million homes, which increases by around 200 000 per annum.
“There are 50 000 houses being constructed annually but this fails to have a significant impact on demand,” she noted.
Asichi said there is a huge deficit in decent housing within the Western region and specifically in Kakamega, urging investors to take advantage of the opportunity to put up affordable houses.
She promised that the Agency, with actors like the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KNCCI) and the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) will provide accurate and reliable information on viable business opportunities to investors.
“Through the Public Private Partnerships, KCIDA also provides incentives like land to prospective investors whose development agenda aligns with the county government of Kakamega,” she noted.
KCIDA is a semi-autonomous agency formed by an Act of Kakamega County Assembly to promote, attract, coordinate and facilitate investments in Kakamega county.
By Moses Wekesa
