Money for the poor used to build Garden City

What you need to know:

  • “At least 20 of these are hotels, shopping centres or companies that build or manage gated communities and luxury property, according to Guardian research,” said the newspaper.
  • CDC is wholly owned by the Department for International Development (DfID). Its mandate is “to lead the UK’s work to end extreme poverty”.
  • A CDC spokesman defended the investments, saying that the sector has the highest job creation potential. “Construction was identified as a priority sector that creates large numbers of low and semi-skilled jobs that are typically open to the poorest people in developing countries.”

Garden City, an upmarket real estate development opening its doors to the public today, has been listed among several developments whose financing has been diverted from British aid funds meant for the poor. 

An article appearing in the UK’s Guardian newspaper Thursday noted that CDC, which jointly with Actis has invested $25 million in developing the 32 acres on Thika Superhighway, has pumped more than $260 million in 44 property and construction companies in Latin America, Africa and Asia.

“At least 20 of these are hotels, shopping centres or companies that build or manage gated communities and luxury property, according to Guardian research,” said the newspaper.

The Sh23 billion Garden City shopping mall will house the first Kenyan retail outlet to be run by South Africa’s Massmart through its subsidiary Game. Massmart is majority owned by US largest retailer Walmart.

EXTREME POVERTY

CDC is wholly owned by the Department for International Development (DfID). Its mandate is “to lead the UK’s work to end extreme poverty”.

A CDC spokesman defended the investments, saying that the sector has the highest job creation potential. “Construction was identified as a priority sector that creates large numbers of low and semi-skilled jobs that are typically open to the poorest people in developing countries.”

The realisation that aid money was used to invest in the state-of-the-art project has elicited criticism, with experts terming the move as “unfair”.

Mr Nick Dearden, director of the World Development Movement, is quoted by the Guardian accusing the British Government of exporting a “highly financialised, highly unequal, highly ideological form of development which helps big business, not ordinary people.”

“If you live in a slum in Nairobi, seeing development money pouring into a luxury block of flats is an insult,” Mr Dearden said.