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Kenya's housing drive risks locking in climate costs for decades, UN warns
President William Ruto speaks in Lurambi, Kakamega, during the handover of Milimani affordable housing units on March 17, 2026.
A new United Nations report published this week says Kenya risks making affordable housing homes uninhabitable for the next generation if it does not ensure that green building standards are being applied on the ground, not just on paper.
The Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction 2025-2026, released by the UN Environment Programme and the Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction, highlights Kenya's National Building of Code 2024 as a model for low- and middle-income countries in Africa. It also warns that rapid construction in emerging economies is driving global building emissions in the wrong direction.
President William Ruto, during the laying of a foundation stone for the construction of the Chesumei Affordable Housing Project in Kapsabet, Nandi County, on March 12, 2026.
Buildings and construction now account for 37 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions. Operational emissions from buildings rose one per cent in 2024 to 9.9 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, moving away from, not toward, the reductions needed to meet Paris Agreement climate targets.
"Buildings can either lock in climate risks or deliver safer, healthier, and more affordable living conditions," said UNEP Executive Director Inger Andersen. "With half of the world's buildings yet to be built or renovated by 2050, governments have a critical opportunity to drive zero-emission, resilient construction through better policies, codes, and investment."
President William Ruto was in Baku this week for the 13th World Urban Forum, which runs through 22 May under the theme "Housing the World: Safe and Resilient Cities and Communities." Cabinet Secretary for Housing Hon. Alice Wahome contributed a statement to THE UNEP report.
"Kenya's rapid urbanisation demands housing and infrastructure solutions that are both resilient and inclusive," Wahome wrote. "Climate-responsive planning combined with evidence-based decision-making is essential to safeguarding vulnerable communities from escalating risks such as heatwaves, flooding, and other climate-related hazards."
Workers at the Chesumei Affordable Housing Project in Kapsabet, Nandi County, during the laying of the foundation stone by President William Ruto on March 12, 2026.
The government says 230,000 units are currently under construction across 37 counties under the Affordable Housing Programme, the cornerstone of Ruto's Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda.
A Controller of Budget report tabled in Parliament in August 2025 found the programme largely behind schedule, with urban development recording the lowest budget absorption rate for the 2024/25 financial year at 86 percent. Some individual sites were running at 11 to 13 per cent completion against targets of 15 to 20 percent.
The UNEP report does not assess whether Kenya's new housing construction is meeting the standards set by its own 2024 building code, which mandates passive cooling strategies including natural ventilation, insulation, shading, and reflective coatings. That gap between policy and construction site is the central question the report raises but does not answer.
Kenya's National Building Code 2024 replaced a framework that dated back to 1968. Published as Legal Notice No. 47 in 2024, it became fully operational on March 1, 2025. Beyond passive cooling, it requires developers to use environmentally friendly material, incorporate solar panels and rainwater harvesting systems, and include smart energy and water management solutions before a new building receives approval.
But there is a catch. When the code was launched, National Construction Authority Executive Director Maurice Akech confirmed that while it had come into force, some of its sustainable development provisions are optional rather than mandatory. Which ones are optional has not been clarified.
The UNEP report notes globally that mandatory compliance and enforcement mechanisms, including regular inspections, performance verification, and penalties, are essential to ensure building codes "translate into real energy savings." It does not assess whether Kenya's enforcement infrastructure is adequate for that task.
The report warns that buildings constructed without adequate ventilation or climate-resilient design become long-term poverty traps, expensive to cool, vulnerable to flooding, and costly to retrofit.
"Well-designed, energy-efficient housing cuts emissions while protecting households from volatile energy prices and extreme heat," the report states. "For low-income families, better housing delivers long-term affordability, health benefits, and energy security."
A separate report published by the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies places Kenya among Africa's most active participants in the emerging international carbon market under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. The report identifies Kenya as collaborating with four acquiring parties on carbon projects, co-leading a Coalition to Grow Carbon Markets alongside Singapore and the United Kingdom, and having submitted its updated national climate plan, the NDC 3.0.
The Article 6 report notes that building and construction is the second-largest sector for carbon credit activity under the new Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism, with all building submissions focused on household energy efficiency. The Global Buildings Performance Network is currently supporting Kenya's
State Department for Public Works to develop a national buildings decarbonisation roadmap running from 2026 to 2040, a process that has identified high-impact mitigation opportunities "particularly in residential and affordable housing."
President William Ruto lays the foundation stone for an affordable housing project during the launch of the Konza Technopolis in Makueni County on October 13, 2025. Looking on is PS Charles Hinga.
This means that affordable homes built to the 2024 code could attract international climate finance. Homes that do not meet the standard represent a missed opportunity and a lasting emissions liability.
"The Paris Agreement sets a clear destination: reaching global net zero by 2050," said Kazuhisa Koakutsu, Director of the A6IP Centre at IGES. "Article 6 and countries' climate action plans are crucial instruments to progress toward this goal."
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