President Uhuru Kenyatta on Wednesday said the government is working on innovative ways of delivering affordable houses to Kenyans.
Kenyatta said the government has embraced new building technologies and is actively involving the private sector as a key partner in the delivery of one of the key promises of his administration.
He said traditional approaches to the housing challenges have failed to keep up with the rising demands for decent shelter as the population expands.
“So we are keenly focused on the manner in which we improve the provision of this service,” Kenyatta said.
The President spoke in Nairobi during the High Level Strategy Dialogue of the first Session of the UN-Habitat Assembly in Nairobi.
“Our ambition to provide our citizens with affordable housing is entrenched in our Constitution 2010 which ascribes the right to accessible and adequate housing and reasonable standards of sanitation. It is also aligned to the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which we have endorsed,” he said.
Noting that the government alone is not in a position to satisfy the housing needs of Kenyans, the Head of State said his administration is employing new innovative ways of attracting private sector partnerships to support the delivery of affordable houses.
“Our target is to provide 500,000 new units which, for Kenya, it is going to be a major milestone because our demand currently is about 200,000 units a year,” the President told delegates.
“We need to look into the future, use technology and innovation in order to achieve the objective of providing our people with affordable housing,” he emphasized.
The President said the government’s call for partnership with the private sector is not limited to big investors but also the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).
JK/abj/APA