Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga launched the construction project in Kibera Thursday, promising that the government was in the process of launching similar i n itiatives across the country to address a growing housing crisis in Nairobi and other towns.
Odinga said the Malaysian company which built a model sample of the anticipated units in the slum would engage the locals on possible avenues of entering a comp r omise arrangement so that the project kicks off immediately.
The Malaysian Malken CCH International Corporation Managing Director Mr. John Baptist said the sample unit which were self contained with two bedrooms were put u p within a span of two weeks using Integrated Building System (IBS).
The Malaysian High Commissioner, Ambassador Delvan Das, was in attendance during the launch of the project.
Odinga said the demands for housing in the capital had grown ten-fold since inde pendence owing to the mushrooming of slums and other unplanned settlements.
He said the population had grown from 350,000 at independence to over 3 million in recent times, hence the need to construct cost effective units which were aff o rdable to the populous under the slum upgrading programme.
Das speech lauded the cordial relationship the two countries enjoyed and expressed optimism the technological and trade exchange initiative would immensely bene f it the two countries.
Odinga assured the crowd during the inauguration of Malaysian low cost housing units in the sprawling slum that the price of their favorite meals, including mai z e flour, which has shot up by more than thrice its value over a year ago, may soon come down within their reach.
The Kibera residents have been holding a series of demonstrations against the rising cost of food.
The crisis saw the Kenyan cabinet convene Thursday to brainstorm on measures req uired to stabilise the price.
Among the measures already taken was to import additional grain and an order barring government agencies from purchasing maize from middlemen blamed for profite e ring from a shortage of the commodity.
Meanwhile, Odinga has challenged fellow countrymen to emulate the sound policy measures the Malaysian people adapted which enabled the Asian country transform t o a middle level income economy from a third world status where Kenya still languished.
The Premier said the comprehensive manner in which Malaysia handled the ethnic diversity among her people resulted in tolerance and peaceful co-existence betwee n perceived rival communities adding that it was time the country aped the model.
"Malaysia is multi ethnic society with similar historical and economical experiences like Kenya, including being a colony of Britain, fought for freedom but iro n ically achieved Kenya's post independence goals of fighting poverty, ignorance and diseases" he decried.
Odinga however attributed the failed efforts to realise the post independence dream to poor governance by past regimes whose administrations neglected developme n t prospects targeting the masses.
He cited the housing schemes for the low income earners whose programmes were shelved after independence and the little efforts made by the post independence go v ernment to put up such structures were negligible.
"At least the colonial administration put housing units in Kaloleni, Mbotela Ziwani, Shauri Moyo and many others but the post independence regime only managed a few units in Buruburu and Madaraka which could not address the population explosion in the city" the PM said.
However, the Premier reiterated that all was not lost after all as the grand coalition government was fast piecing the shattered dreams to make them a reality, a dding that a series of slum upgrading initiatives were concurrently in the offing.
Others present during the launch were Lands Minister James Orengo and his housing counterpart Soita Shitanda.
Nairobi - 27/11/2008
Pana
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