Nakuru Town facing a shortfall in housing as population grows
An aerial view of Nakuru Town. There is a shortfall of residential and business housing within the town and in the surrounding areas. PHOTO | SULEIMAN MBATIAH | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- Only 2,000 units are available in Nakuru, creating a shortfall of 8,000 units.
- The Nakuru County government, in a report, says it does not building property.
- Its main mandate is to promote a conducive environment to facilitate growth in the sector.
- Most investors are now shifting their focus to less populated areas away from the town.
Nakuru County still has insufficient housing despite efforts to address the shortage.
There is a shortfall of both residential and business housing within the town and in the surrounding areas.
According to a report by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics, Nakuru requires 10,000 housing units in order to meet the current demand.
However, only 2,000 units are available, creating a shortfall of 8,000 units.
The Nakuru County government, in a report, says it does not build properties and its main mandate is to promote a conducive environment to facilitate growth in the sector.
“We have built the capacity of all our sub-county offices to ensure approval for development is done within 30 days,” reads the county report.
The need for more housing units has been linked to Nakuru Town’s central location and the growing population of what was once a small farming town.
“One significant thing that as a government we have done on this is to ensure effective planning of space usage through the establishment of the Digital Topographical Mapping and the Preparation of the Nakuru County Spatial Development Plan 2014/2024,” the report adds.
Most investors are now shifting their focus to less populated areas away from the town that can offer affordable housing to middle-income earners.
