West Pokot's first affordable housing project breaks ground with 305 units in Sigor
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Kenya's Affordable Housing Programme has started in West Pokot County, with 305 units under construction at Runo in Weiwei Ward, Sigor Constituency, at a cost of Sh685 million.
Kenya's Affordable Housing Programme (AHP) has officially started in West Pokot County, with Sigor Constituency becoming the first area to benefit after delays caused by difficulties in acquiring land for the projects.
The project at Runo area in Weiwei Ward, along the Marich Pass-Sigor-Lomut-Tot highway, will involve 305 housing units at a cost of Sh685 million, with completion expected in 18 months. The State Department for Lands, Housing and Urban Development handed the site over to the contractor, Mtelo Enterprises Limited.
West Pokot County Commissioner David Saruni said the project would transform the area by stimulating economic activity, creating jobs and attracting new investment, and noted that the site sits along a newly upgraded highway linking West Pokot to Elgeyo Marakwet, Baringo and Turkana counties. "This is the first AHP project being launched within the county. We have others that follow in Kacheliba, Alale (Pokot North), Kapenguria (West Pokot) and South Pokot," he said.
State Department for Lands, Housing and Urban Development county director Jeremiah Miaro said a similar affordable housing project is under way in Kacheliba Town at a cost of Sh687 million. Both schemes will have 305 units each, together with a kindergarten, shops, a borehole and civil works. He said the government had invested close to Sh2.4 billion in West Pokot through the Affordable Housing programme, Economic Stimulus Programme markets and students' hostels.
Weiwei Ward MCA David Moiben welcomed the investment and appealed to the contractor to prioritise local residents when recruiting unskilled labour, while cautioning residents against selling land near the project. "Selling of land invites poverty. Selling land is like buying poverty for yourself," he said. Lands county executive committee member Martin Lotee pointed to the value of the project despite the delays in commencement, which he attributed to logistical challenges in acquiring the land.