The NECSA Kenya Memorandum on the Affordable Housing Bill, 2023
- Category: NECSA Memoranda
- Date 29-01-2024
On the 23rd of November 2023, the High Court of Kenya declared the Affordable Housing Levy as unconstitutional due to the lack of a legal framework on how the funds would be collected and administered. Thereafter, the National Assembly published the Affordable Housing Bill, 2023 to remedy the concerns raised by the High Court.
On the 11th of January 2024, the National Assembly published a notice providing a timetable for seeking the views of a wide cross-section of stakeholders and technical experts, as well as holding public hearings in 19 counties.
Pursuant to this call for public comments, the National Environment Civil Society Alliance of Kenya (NECSA-K), with a membership of over 100 organizations held a stakeholders’ and technical experts held a meeting on the 25th and 26th of January 2024 to review the Affordable Housing Bill, 2023. The following twelve organizations participated in the meeting; WWF Kenya, Rural Empowerment and Development Organization (REDO), Farm Forestry Smallholder Producers Association of Kenya (FF-SPAK), National Alliance of Community Forest Associations (NACOFA), Africa Nature Organization (ANO), Transfo Greenworld, Community Research in Environment and Development Initiatives (CREADIS), Forest Action Network (FAN), Baringo Council of WRUAs, Sustainable Development Initiatives, Odwori Architects and Associates and Oure Onderi Advocates. Some of the comments generated included the following:
- Kenya has a Housing Act, CAP 117, 1953 (2012, Amendment). It’s an Act of Parliament to provide loans and grants of public moneys for the construction of dwellings; to establish a housing fund and a housing board for these purposes; and for connected purposes. The National Assembly should seek to review the existing Housing Act rather than develop a new one to avoid duplication of duties, overlapping regulations and to also conserve the institutional memory of important corporations such as the National Housing Corporation which has assets and staff attached to it.
- The levy should apply to all categories of income earners.
- Tendering processes for construction works and plans must be properly defined and transparent in accordance to the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act, 2015
- The Affordable Housing Schemes should have by-laws which prevent uncontrolled development.
- The housing units’ design, planning and works, should be aligned to specified standards based on international practice. Proper emergency procedures and/or channels should be developed to ensure people can be evacuated on time in case of disasters such as fires. Members recommend the installation of fire extinguishers, properly set up fire assembly points and CCTV cameras for security. The houses should be friendly to the disabled or old by adhering to good construction standards like elevator and ramps.
- The Affordable Housing Units should be constructed using the Green building approach where socio-cultural housing standards, sustainable green energy sources and equipment installed, sustainable and efficient water management, are considered.
- The Affordable Housing Bill, 2023 should promote sustainable land-use practices and discourage the conversion of farmlands into housing schemes to preserve agricultural productivity and environmental balance.
- The Bill should assure strict adherence to the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) standards in the Affordable housing scheme. Energy-efficient construction materials should be used, renewable and clean energy sources given priority in energy supply, and green buildings adopted to minimize ecological footprint. Socially, the housing units should be accessible, affordable and communities engaged to establish and address their needs. On Governance, processes should be transparent, ethical and strictly adhere to set regulatory standards.
Download the comprehensive memorandum generated here.