Makueni County Commissioner (CC) Duncan Darusi has said the construction of 900 housing units, at a cost of over Sh2 billion, through the State Department of Housing and Urban Development, has positively impacted the local economy.
Darusi said that the contractor was sourcing timber, ballast, sand, cement and water needed for the construction of the housing project locally hence benefiting the area residents directly.
He said that besides direct employment of youths, there was indirect employment of women who prepare food for the workers at the construction site that kicked off in July 2024.
He was speaking on Thursday at the construction site in Wote town when he led a section of members of the National Government Development-County Management Implementation Oversight Committee (NGD-CMIOC) to evaluate the progress of the project.
“Currently we have employed 275 workers, however we want to scale our works by the end of this month and increase our labour force to 500,” said the Contractor of Parklane Construction Limited Fred Muli.
On his part, the Eastern Regional Director of housing, Patrick Mwangi said that the government was committed to ensuring that the local people benefit from the project through sourcing of materials locally.
In this regard, Mr. Mwangi called upon the County Government, elected leaders and national government administration to support the project so that they can deliver development to the people promised by President William Ruto.
Mwangi disclosed that the progress of the housing project was at 31 percent and expected to complete by January 2026, as the construction works were to take 18 months.
“I call upon Members of Parliament, the Senator, and the County Government to support the project so that we can provide the community with development promised by the President,” said Mwangi.
“Sourcing of materials will be done locally. People at the grassroot need to benefit like the Jua Kali Artisans who make windows and doors besides other things,” he added.
The director further disclosed that the government had advertised three more projects for affordable housing in Makindu, Mbooni and Kikima saying the contractors will be awarded soon. The stalled civil servants project has also been advertised.
On markets, Mwangi said that the government has initiated construction of markets in the six constituencies in the county noting that more youths will be recruited with a view to uplift their lives.
He added that the markets will be of two categories namely stimulus that will have 200 traders and the modern one that will accommodate 300-400 traders respectively.
At the same time, the director revealed that the government has also initiated construction of one hostel in each constituency that accommodates students in universities and training colleges.
Speaking at the event, Director Delivery Lower Eastern Region James Ikamati said that the contractor should ensure transfer of skills to the unskilled workers including the interns from technical training institutes in the area.
By Patrick Nyakundi
