Kenya Sets Up Building Technology Centres

The government is setting up low-cost building technology centres in all constituencies in Kenya as it seeks to promote the development of affordable housing in the country.

Sources told CK that the planned technology centres will help the government promote low-cost housing and the use of location-specific building materials across the country.

Low-cost building technologies such as expanded polystyrene technology (EPS), plastic panels and interlocking blocks could help boost the supply of new houses to 200,000 units annually by next year.

Construction is underway for at least 50 centres, with the first centre in Movoko already being operational.

The facilities will be used to train developers on modern building technologies and to educate the communities on the benefits of new building technologies.

The centres will also be used to promote the National Housing Corporation’s expanded polystyrene panels that promise to cut overall construction costs by about 20 per cent. 

RELATED: Kenya Taps SA Tech to Cut Building Costs by Half

The government is planning to capitalise on hydraform technology to reduce the cost of building materials by half.

Imported from South Africa, the technology uses interlocking, hardened earthen blocks to minimise the use of cement and sand.

Players in the housing sector have welcomed the new technology saying it could address the current housing deficit and eliminate slums in major urban centres.

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