The United Kingdom and Kenya governments have initiated the construction of the ambitious multibillion Nairobi Railway City.
The project launched yesterday by President William Ruto will have over 10,000 affordable housing units, a non-motorised transport system, eco-friendly green spaces and a modern matatu terminus linked to the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) network.
President Ruto said the project will help to decongest Nairobi.
“We are committed to ensuring Nairobi realises its full potential as an economic hub. This is the beginning of linking of our railway system to deliver economic prosperity for our people,” he said.
Congestion problem
Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja urged the national government to work closely with his administration to solve the city’s congestion problem.
“In Nairobi, we have an advantage due to our geographical location. You can connect to any part of the world in a short time. You can connect to London in just 8 hours … But then you come back to Nairobi and you get stuck in traffic for more than four hours,” Mr Sakaja said.
According to UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, the project will serve as a template for other projects that the UK seeks to implement in Africa.
“It will regenerate central Nairobi and keep Kenya’s ambitions on climate on track. It will be built with the latest technology in green building technology to give the people of Nairobi an accessible and efficient railway system,” Mr Cleverly said. The project is located on 425 acres of land belonging to Kenya Railways.
Earlier in Mavoko, Machakos County, President Ruto broke ground for a Sh20 billion housing project at Syokimau.
The mixed-use development has 5,300 housing units, market, school and hospital. It will be done jointly by the United Nations Habitat, national government and a private developer.
Informal settlements
“We have embarked on this programme because there are more than 6.5 million Kenyans who stay in informal settlements. Less than 40,000 Kenyans are on mortgage. We should have about 1.5 million paying mortgages to be homeowners,” President Ruto said.
Machakos Governor Wavinya Ndeti said her administration was ready to deepen its collaboration with the national government on the affordable housing agenda. BY DAILY NATION