Why Chinese Contractors Dominate Kenya’s Affordable Housing Programme
In a market where speed and scale are non-negotiable, the Affordable Housing Programme has become the arena for a quiet contest. The government framed it as a chance to grow local contracting capacity. Yet Chinese firms have emerged as the most visible participants. The reasons are not simple. They reveal structural gaps that domestic contractors […]
The Commercial Shift: Why Private Developers Are Moving Away from Housing
For years, residential construction has dominated Nairobi’s building landscape. Apartments, gated communities, and housing estates have been the bread and butter of private developers. The government’s aggressive push into affordable housing has changed that calculation entirely. Private developers are pivoting. Commercial projects—offices, warehouses, retail centres, and industrial facilities—now account for a growing share of new […]
Alternative Fuels in Cement: How Bamburi–Sinoma Pact Changes the Industry
Cement has a carbon problem that no amount of efficiency can fully solve. Roughly half of its carbon dioxide emissions arise not from burning fuel, but from the chemical decomposition of limestone during clinker production. It is an inescapable consequence of the manufacturing process itself. Global cement manufacturing produces approximately 1.6 billion metric tonnes of […]
The Budget That Keeps Housing Alive: Sh120.2 Billion for Affordable Housing
Every year, when the National Treasury reads the budget, contractors and developers listen for one number. How much is the government actually putting into housing? Not promises. Not policy papers. Actual shillings. In the 2025/26 financial year, that number is Sh120.2 billion allocated to the housing and settlement sector . This is not small. It […]
The 47,000 Units Nobody Is Talking About: Inside Kenya’s Security Forces Housing Programme
While the Affordable Housing Programme dominates headlines and public discourse, a massive institutional housing project has been quietly taking shape across the country. It does not get the same media attention. There are no flashy ground-breaking ceremonies with cabinet secretaries every week. But the numbers are substantial, and the work is real. The government is […]
The 3% Problem: Why Kenya’s Construction Industry Cannot Afford to Leave Women Behind
IMost construction sites in Kenya something have something in common. The workers are nearly all men. The foremen are men. The site managers are men. The engineers signing off on structural drawings are overwhelmingly men. This is not accidental. It is the result of decades of unexamined practice. But it is becoming a problem the […]
The Skills Pipeline: How 5,500 Interns Are Reshaping Site Dynamics in 2026
If you have walked onto a construction site in Kenya recently, you may have noticed something different. Among the seasoned foremen and experienced artisans, there are younger faces. They carry notebooks. They ask questions. They are learning. They are part of something deliberate. In January 2026, President William Ruto hosted 5,500 graduate interns at State […]