Government Moves to Fast-Track Delayed Affordable Housing Projects

The Government has stepped up efforts to accelerate the delivery of affordable housing projects by addressing procurement bottlenecks, strengthening contractor oversight and fast-tracking developments facing implementation delays.

Principal Secretary for Housing and Urban Development Charles Hinga told the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Housing, Urban Planning and Public Works that the State Department had introduced corrective measures to unlock projects affected by procurement and implementation challenges.

Hinga said the Government was working with the National Treasury to resolve challenges associated with the transition to the electronic government procurement system, which had affected the evaluation and award of some tenders.

“We have had challenges with the implementation of e-GP but we are working closely with Treasury,” Hinga told the Committee.

He said the collaboration with Treasury was aimed at expediting the award of projects that had been delayed by challenges in the procurement system.

Government Tightens Contractor Oversight

The Ministry is also increasing scrutiny of contractors involved in affordable housing projects to ensure only companies with the necessary technical and financial capacity are awarded contracts.

“We have tightened that space,” Hinga said.

The State Department is further engaging contractors handling delayed projects while strengthening monitoring of construction works to identify and address challenges before they significantly affect completion timelines.

Hinga said the growing scale of the affordable housing programme had made stronger oversight and increased capacity within the construction sector necessary.

Parliament Calls for Stronger Monitoring

The National Assembly Housing Committee welcomed the Government's efforts but urged the Ministry to strengthen monitoring and evaluation to ensure the measures result in completed projects.

Committee member Abraham Kirwa called for enhanced oversight so that emerging challenges can be identified and addressed before they escalate into major delays.

The committee's concerns come as the Government seeks to accelerate the implementation of its affordable housing programme across the country.

Land Titles and Infrastructure

The Ministry also said it was working with the State Department responsible for lands to facilitate the acquisition of title documents for housing developments.

Securing land titles is considered an important component of project completion and eventual occupation of the developments by beneficiaries.

The Government is also pursuing closer cooperation with county governments and municipalities to improve urban planning, infrastructure delivery and management of housing developments.

Hinga said the Ministry would continue working with Parliament and other government agencies to resolve implementation challenges affecting the programme.

Focus on Completion and Beneficiaries

The interventions are intended to ensure government-funded housing projects are completed, allocated to eligible beneficiaries and supported by the infrastructure and services required to make the developments sustainable.

The Ministry maintained that although implementation challenges remain, the Government is focused on resolving the bottlenecks and keeping the affordable housing programme on course.

The programme is expected to continue playing a key role in the Government's efforts to expand access to decent housing while supporting construction activity, employment and the transformation of urban communities.