Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) involved in the government's Affordable Housing programme are set to benefit after the government allocated Ksh4.4 billion to pay them.

This was announced by President William Ruto during the Mashujaa Day celebrations in Kwale County on Sunday. 

The president said his administration is keen on making the Affordable Housing Programme a success, and one of the ways to ensure all Kenyans benefit is by engaging local enterprises in supplying goods and services to the programme. 

"To facilitate this, the government has allocated Ksh.4.4 billion specifically for payments to MSMEs supplying goods and services under the program. Our collaboration with the Jua Kali sector has demonstrated the Affordable Housing Program’s significant potential to transform local manufacturing," Ruto said. 

He singled out a local venture, Soweto Highrise Fabricators and Woodworkers Association in Kibera, which has been awarded a Ksh.720 million contract to fabricate construction material for the project. 

Ruto said the partnership will greatly enhance the business prospects of this Jua Kali association, now recognised as a bona fide AHP supplier.

"In Kwale County, over 200 artisans are providing essential services at various sites, fabricating components such as doors, windows, and cabinet fittings. The success of involving worker cooperatives and artisans has strengthened our commitment to supporting local businesses," Ruto added.

He said that so far, the Affordable Housing Programme has created over 160,000 jobs throughout the housing value chain, adding that while the industry remains predominantly male, they are working to increase female participation to 30%, up from the current 20%.

The president revealed that in December this year, his administration will hand over 1,080 new studio units at the Mukuru Meteorological Site in Nairobi, with mortgages priced at Ksh.3200 per month.

"The revolutionary dimension of this milestone is that, finally, mortgages will no longer be the vocabulary of a lucky few but an accessible, feasible and convenient instrument of bottom-up empowerment, making home ownership affordable and, therefore, attainable," Ruto further said.