Affordable Housing falls short as less than 300,000 Kenyans register despite Sh81.4 billion spent
Data from the State Department for Housing and Urban Development shows that only 292,326 people had enrolled, representing roughly 0.5 per cent of the country’s 53.3 million population, a stark contrast to the government’s projected 565,800 registrations.
Despite the government spending over Sh81.4 billion on affordable housing over the past three years, less than 300,000 Kenyans had registered to buy units by June 2025, falling far short of the targets set for the Boma Yangu programme.
Data from the State Department for Housing and Urban Development shows that only 292,326 people had enrolled, representing roughly 0.5 per cent of the country’s 53.3 million population, a stark contrast to the government’s projected 565,800 registrations.
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"Target not achieved. Fewer people than anticipated registered on Boma Yangu," the State Department said in disclosures regarding "the number of cumulative potential homeowners registered on Boma Yangu."
The figures come despite earlier statements by officials suggesting that more than half a million Kenyans had registered on the platform, with the Boma Yangu website currently showing 894,859 users. A more recent statement from the State Department for Housing indicated that registration had reached 1,020,861 by Saturday, with Sh3.84 billion saved.
The disclosures were included in presentations for the 2027/28 fiscal year budget proposals, which review achievements over the three years to June 2025. The documents reveal that only 2,075 housing units were completed under the Affordable Housing Programme (AHP) between July 2022 and June 2025, with legal challenges blamed for delays.
"The AHP completed 2,075 housing units across various counties, including 605 in Bondeni, 1,080 in Mukuru, and several institutional and prison units, while ongoing projects include 62,123 affordable units at an average of 32 per cent completion, 44,803 social units at 17 per cent, and 11,527 institutional units at 22 per cent completion level," reads the report.
The department cited court litigations and the lack of a law to enable the use of Housing Levy collections from workers as key reasons for missing targets. It also failed to achieve construction targets for 217,654 affordable housing units in 2022-23 and 2024-25 due to restrictions on expenditure before the Affordable Housing Regulations were passed. Construction of 80,909 social housing units was similarly affected.
"Target not achieved due to court litigations, which stopped the construction. However, 1,080 units are complete, 44,803 units are ongoing at an average of 17 per cent completion," the department added.
The budget documents show that the AHP has an overall allocation of Sh627 billion running from July 2023 to June 2032, noting that spending was low in the initial years due to the absence of regulations, which were only passed early last year.
Occupancy levels for completed units have been high. All houses built in Homa Bay and Mukuru have been purchased, while 80 per cent of the 605 units in Bondeni, Nakuru, have been taken.
The State aims to deliver a total of 500,000 affordable, social, institutional and student housing units by 2029.
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