Uhuru's Housing Project Scores Big as 11 Chinese Firms Bid to Invest

President Uhuru Kenyatta's affordable housing project won big during the joint Kenya-China business forum held in Beijing, China on Friday morning.

Cabinet Secretary (CS) for Transport, Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development, James Macharia, revealed that 11 Chinese companies were jostling to get a piece of the pie in terms of investing in the project.

"So far, more than 11 Chinese companies have expressed interest in investing more than Ksh1.9 trillion to build more than 721,000 affordable housing units," read an excerpt of a tweet by CS Macharia.

Mr Macharia affirmed that the potential investment would go a long way in bridging the current deficit of about 200,000 units annually within the country.

He went on to reveal that the country had set up special economic zones in Dongo Kundu, Kisumu, Nairobi, Naivasha to ensure that business people were accorded an opportunity to invest in different parts of the country.

Uhuru had earlier on delivered a presentation in a bid to woo Chinese investors present at the forum to look at Kenya as a highly valuable investment opportunity.

"We are not asking you to do Kenya any favours, we want you to come and invest in Kenya because when you make money, we will make money, this is what shared prosperity is all about," Uhuru asserted.

President Uhuru informed the various delegates and major players in the Chinese industry that investing in Kenya offered a unique opportunity as it provided any potential investors greater access to a wider African market.

The affordable housing program is part of the Jubilee government’s efforts to reduce the housing backlog that currently stands at two million units.

Uhuru's government had pledged to provide 500,000 decent and affordable houses by 2022 as part of his big 4 agenda, and the new potential investment would go a long way in helping them to fulfill their promise.