Kenya postpones affordable housing project in Kisumu to September

The Kenyan government has postponed the construction of affordable housing in Kisumu County until September. District Director of Housing Fredericks Onyango has blamed the delays on delayed funding.

The Kisumu District Government, in collaboration with the national government and other stakeholders, began developing 3,000 affordable housing units in the district as early as December 2020. According to the plan, these residential units should be completed by the end of this year. 1700 should be built in Makasembo, while 1300 units in Anderson Estate

“The final budget of the affordable housing project in Kisumu has not been announced, we only have a draft budget. The state has not yet released the funds. The project budget was originally estimated at $ 7.4 million, ”said Onyango.

However, despite the backlog, Onyango said the groundbreaking ceremony, which was due this month, will continue to take place as planned and the county is currently looking for contractors.

Also Read: $ 56 Million Buxton Affordable Housing Project Begins in Mombasa, Kenya

Models considered

In addition, discussions and consultations are ongoing with construction experts to reach a consensus on a model for affordable housing in Kisumu. The models considered include Design Build and Transfer (DBT) and Built Operate Transfer (BOT).

“We’re looking at the Nairobi, Mombasa, and Kitui counties that have their programs in place to see what they’re doing so we can emulate them. In order to reduce delays caused by financing bottlenecks, the district is cooperating with potential real estate developers in the implementation of the project. We also followed a very rigorous process with public participation and agreed on how our former tenants would be relocated here after the construction period, ”affirmed the director.

Construction is to be done in stages and the first phase is aimed at one-bedroom apartments for the former settlers. During the project launch late last year, Area Governor Prof. Anyang ‘Nyong’o recommended that the use of urban space, the restructuring and rebuilding of the eight parks in Kisumu City should respect the county’s efforts to protect green spaces.

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