The Government’s ambitious plan to construct 50,000 housing units in Mombasa is gathering pace, as various parcels of land have been earmarked for the Affordable Housing Programme (AHP).
AHP is one of the flagship projects of the Kenya Kwanza Administration as aptly espoused in the Bottom-up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA).
Some proposed sites are Ganjoni 2.1 acres, Hobley six acres, V.O.K 22 acres, Shimo la Tewa 60 acres, and National Housing Corporation (NHC) 58 acres of land in Changamwe.
“In Mombasa, we target to build 50,000 housing units, at the moment Buxton Phase One is completed with 582 units, and work is ongoing at Buxton Phase Two where we are expecting 1512 units,” said Ronald Mwiwawi Acting Mombasa County Commissioner, during an AHP and Markets Committee meeting.
He added: “The meeting was attended by senior officials from the State Department of Housing and Urban Development led by Secretary of Administration, Mr. Hiram Kahiro”.
In V.O.K 2,850 units, a market, school, and social amenities will be constructed. NHC is constructing 20,000 housing units on its 58-acre land in Changamwe Sub-county.
“We expect 50,000 youths from the Jua Kali sector to get employment. We are working closely with the County Government in implementing the AHP for the benefit of Mombasa residents,” said Mwiwawi.
He further urged Mombasa residents and leaders to cooperate with the County AHP and Markets Committee and the National Government, to actualize the housing plan.
John Karanja, Coast Regional Director of AHP and Markets, said sites have been identified across all six coastal counties, and construction is set to commence soon.
“When all these sites are activated in each of the counties, we expect the benefit to be enormous in the value chain of housing development. We expect in each of the counties 30,000 skilled and non-skilled laborers to be utilized,” said Karanja, adding that modern markets will also be constructed.
He added that 3,000 units of student village, will be constructed at the Technical University of Mombasa to accommodate 6,000 students. Similar students’ villages will be established at Pwani University, Taita-Taveta University, and the Kenya Coast Polytechnic.
“AHP is a critical component of this government we must make sure we give decent and affordable housing to our residents,” stated Karanja.
He added: “The basic framework for AHP is that the benefit can be localized as economic stimulus. Each constituency is supposed to have at least 200 units to start with.”
Through social housing that goes at Sh600,000, a person is eligible to own a unit once a buyer pays ten percent. To make sure Jua Kali workers benefit, AHP has 80 products that are supposed to be supplied by Jua Kali.
Jua Kali artisans who lack certifications will be certified by relevant government agencies on-site.
Suleiman Mwakisanga, Likoni Jua Kali Chairman, said youths who were idling will now have an opportunity to work in AHP and improve their livelihoods.
“The coming of the AHP is a new dawn for Jua Kali workers, we have been neglected due to a lack of certificates. Our expertise was not being used as we were sidelined. We thank the government for the programme,” said Mwakisanga, adding that they will gain more skills in the construction.
The State Department for Housing and Urban Development Administration Secretary, Mr. Hiram Kahiro, emphasized the Government’s commitment to providing and accessing decent and affordable housing for all Kenyans.
By Sadik Hassan
