Nairobi — Nairobi is the most expensive city to build in Africa, after South Africa’s Johannesburg and 86th globally, according to a report by design and consultancy firm Arcadis.
The study also finds that Nairobi’s construction costs topped other global cities including Beijing, Shangai, Kuala Lumpur and Mumbai.
Access to finance, high costs of land and construction were also noted to be the leading challenges facing investors and developers in the country.
“Other challenges noted in the study include over-supply in certain real estate investment brackets such as commercial, office and retail property,” said the report.
The report comes at the back of government’s intention of making construction inexpensive, in a bid to deliver affordable houses to Kenyans, under the housing goal of the Big four agenda.
President Uhuru Kenyatta in May said the government has embraced new building technologies and is actively involving the private sector as a key partner in the delivery of the housing promise.
He said traditional approaches to the housing challenges have failed to keep up with the rising demands for decent shelter as the population expands.
“So we are keenly focused on the manner in which we improve the provision of this service,” the President said.
“Our ambition to provide our citizens with affordable housing is entrenched in our Constitution 2010 which ascribes the right to accessible and adequate housing and reasonable standards of sanitation. It is also aligned to the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which we have endorsed,” he added.
The report ranked cities were based on factors that include costs of living, labour and materials.
Source: allafrica
