At least 5,000 families living in five residential estates in Eldoret City have been issued with eviction notices to prepare for President William Ruto's multi-billion-shillings affordable housing project.
The targeted estates, located along the busy Eldoret-Webuye highway, are said to have existed for more than 70 years and include Kilimani, Tom Mboya, Kuria, WCC, and Kamanda, which are made up of low-cost houses constructed by the defunct Eldoret Municipal Council.
The Uasin Gishu County government, through the Department of Housing and Urban Development, has given the families until April 12, 2025, to vacate the housing units.
The vacate notice signed by the County Chief Officer for Housing and Urban Development Julius Koech is addressed to victims residing in Kilimani, Tom Mboya, Kuria, West area near Pipeline and Kamanda estates.
“This is to notify you that the Kidiwa 2 project will soon kick off. As per the lease agreement, you are hereby given three months (90 days) notice to vacate the houses with effect from 13th January 2025 to 12th April 2025 to pave the way for implementation of the Kidiwa 2 Affordable Housing project,” said Julius Koech, Chief Officer Housing and Urban Development in the notice dated January 13, 2025.
The plan is to construct at least 10,000 units under the Affordable Housing project scheme.
Staff from Kenya Power Eldoret regional office have been put on standby to start the disconnection of electricity lines from the targeted housing units ahead of the deadline.
A majority of the families who live in the defunct Eldoret municipal council houses are employees of the devolved unit, with others from the national government.
The affected families have appealed to the authorities to delay the impending demolition of their houses, terming the notice too short for them to look for an alternative accommodation.
A junior staff at Uasin Gishu county government expressed fear that with her current earnings, she cannot afford a more expensive house as she has been paying Sh3,0000 rent for her current house.
"I have three children in primary school and two in secondary school. My salary is low and I may not afford the rent for another house," said the employee, who declined to be named for fear of victimisation.
Another resident, who is a driver with the national government, asked the authorities to allow them to stay in the houses until December to enable their children, who are candidates, to sit their national examination.
"We kindly appeal to the government to allow our children to finish their school calendar especially those who are due to sit for their national examinations this year," said the driver who also sought anonymity.
At least 800 families were early last year evicted from Eldoret’s Pioneer Estate and the houses constructed by the defunct Municipal Council flattened to allow the construction of 1,508 units at the estate where 9 high-rise residential blocks will be put up.
The government promised to pay Sh10,000 to each of the 800 families to help them move out but many of them said they did not receive the money.
President Ruto launched the Pioneer housing programme in January last year alongside the Kapsoswa estate where tenants were also evicted to pave the way for the project.
While launching affordable housing projects in parts of the North Rift region, President Ruto put on notice private developers who have illegally acquired public plots asking them to either surrender them or face forceful eviction.
He directed Ministry of Lands officials and national and county administrators to coordinate the recovery of the grabbed public plots to avoid delaying key development projects across the country.
“These land grabbers have only one option, to surrender public land and move out before we swing into action and repossess them,” said Dr Ruto, directing Rift Valley Regional Commissioner Abdi Hassan to spearhead the repossession in the region.
According to Dr Abdi, plans to recover the grabbed public plots have kicked off and illegal occupants petitioned to move out.
In neighbouring Trans Nzoia County, however, implementation of the much-hyped affordable housing programme is yet to kick off almost a year after it was launched by President Ruto on January 16, 2024.
The land where the Head of State launched the project is now an illegal dumping site that has attracted street families.
The 2,000 housing units were to be put up in a prison land behind the Muslim cemetery but have experienced delays due to what officials from the State Department of Housing attribute to failure by contractor to meet set standards for the project.
Residents have questioned the delayed implementation of the project meant to create employment opportunities and propel the growth and expansion of Kitale Town.
“We fail to under why the project has not kicked off despite being launched by the President. We expected to benefit from the program like counties,” said Peter Wafula, a Kitale resident.
A visit by Nation Africa to the site found street children scavenging for leftovers and other valuable materials at the site.
Some prison warders patrol the area as they keep watch on prisoners clearing bushes that have covered where the affordable houses were to be constructed.
While National Government officials have defended the project, noting that it was still on course, an official of the Housing department at the county admitted delays in the evaluation and planning stages.
“There have been serious evaluation and planning challenges because it involves several units. The project will hopefully commence early next year,” said an official, who asked not to be named as he is not authorised to speak to the media.
Trans Nzoia County Commissioner Gideon Oyagi said the project was being supervised and managed by the State Department of Housing.
A senior director at the State Department of Housing Richard Tuta attributed the delays to the failure of the initial contractor to meet set requirements for the project.
“This is a very big project, it's a mini-city and it involves many units. We have already identified a new contractor who will be on-site,” Mr Tuta told Nation Africa.
He noted that the project was a game-changer and was a great way to develop and upgrade the agricultural town.
He observed the Kenya Kwanza government is also set to implement another affordable housing project at Maili Tatu on Kitale-Webuye road that will consist of 1,040 units.
“These are complex projects that contractors must qualify and meet the procurement standards set by the government. This delay has allowed us to get the right contractors and ensure successful implementation of the projects,” noted Mr Tuta.
During his tour of Kitale last January, President Ruto disclosed plans to relocate the medium prison to pave the way for the town’s upgrade and construction of affordable housing projects, among other national government projects.
He ordered the repossession of the Kitale Prison land from individuals who have settled on the over 2,700 acres of the disputed prison land.
This is after Governor George Natembeya had appealed to the President to consider relocating the correctional facility, noting that the town has over the years outgrown the original colonial-era physical plan, leaving insufficient space for further development.
The Kitale Medium Security Prison sits at the heart of the town, and its relocation is meant to accommodate the ambitious urban expansion of Kitale town.
The town was originally designed for around 45,000 people but it currently accommodates a population of more than 200,000.
With half of its land belonging to the Kitale Golf Club and the Kenya Railway Corporation, the town faces planning chaos due to restricted space and encroachment on public spaces.
Kitale hosts four prisons – the Kitale Main Prison, the Kitale Women's Prison, the Kitale Annex Prison, and the Kitale Medium Prison.
