- President Uhuru Kenyatta’s vision of providing 100,000 affordable housing units to Kenyans is poised to get a major boost.
- The country is set to receive Sh8 billion from the United Kingdom for its affordable housing project.
President Uhuru Kenyatta’s vision of providing 100,000 affordable housing units to Kenyans, is poised to get a major boost. The country is set to receive Sh8 billion from the United Kingdom for its affordable housing project. This was announced by UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, during his first official visit to Kenya. The National Affordable Housing Project was launched by the President in 2018 as part of the Big Four Agenda.The project to build at least 500,000 homes in two years was constrained by lack of funds, despite huge allocations from the National Treasury, including an Sh15.5 billion set aside last June. It is hoped that with the funding support from the UK, the project will see light
Speaking about the plan, the U K foreign secretary stated that the £53 million agreement will provide affordable housing to 10,000 Kenyan families through Acorn Housing. Acorn launched Kenya’s first green bond on the London Stock Exchange a year ago. President Kenyatta attended the launch.
The funding will be disbursed in batches. UK-funded InfraCo will contribute almost Sh1 billion and the remaining will come from private companies, both part of the British government’s investment in infrastructure in Africa. Additionally, the Foreign Secretary announced an Sh7.2 billion support towards the mitigation of climate change across the country, and another Sh24 billion for the expansion of digital connectivity on the continent.
Kenya and the UK are in the process of negotiating the five-year strategic partnership signed in January 2020. The deal signed by Mr Kenyatta during his visit to Britain is expected to give a major boost to bilateral relations post-Brexit. The agreement provides for co-operation between the two countries in the areas of education, trade, counter-terrorism, and security among others.
