Diaspora buyers seek state help after Ruaka apartment project stalls with KSh260m paid in
Written on
More than 70 Kenyan diaspora purchasers say they have committed about KSh260 million to a Ruaka apartment development since 2019 and are asking government to intervene after construction stalled.
More than 70 diaspora purchasers say they have committed approximately KSh260 million to the Fanisi Tigoni View Apartment project in Ruaka, Kiambu County, since 2019, and are now seeking government intervention after construction stalled.
According to the purchasers' account, the development was sold through a campaign targeting Kenyans abroad, with deposits paid for apartments expected to be completed within 24 months of construction starting in February 2019. When progress fell behind schedule, buyers sought financial records and questioned the handling of funds, and DHML was subsequently established to provide a structure for overseeing the development and representing their interests.
The parties later disagreed over ownership and management, and construction stopped towards the end of 2025 on the purchasers' account. A proposed KSh250 million financing package has failed to resolve the differences. One party to the dispute, identified as Mbugua, denies the accusations and says they are fabricated; he has offered to finance completion through Sprinter, but only on condition that the project is returned to the company and DHML is removed.
The buyers say they have approached the State Department for Diaspora Affairs and other investigative authorities. The department, established in 2022 to protect diaspora rights and welfare and to connect overseas communities with investment opportunities, acknowledged awareness of the matter and expressed a commitment to protecting diaspora investors. Its Diaspora Investment Support Office lists investment facilitation, legal and advisory support, dispute-resolution assistance, risk management and post-investment follow-up among its responsibilities.
The case highlights the checks the purchasers say buyers should make before committing money to an off-plan project: establishing who owns the land, which company is selling or developing the apartments, how payments will be held, what rights the purchase agreement confers, and the arrangements for construction oversight, financial reporting and dispute resolution. Where multiple buyers fund a single development, independent monitoring and clear rules on access to financial records reduce uncertainty when disagreements emerge, the report noted.
For public institutions, the report argued, the challenge is to make investment support operational rather than promotional, by providing accessible guidance, directing investors to the appropriate regulators and following up after funds have been committed.