Over 3000 students at Machakos University are set to benefit from affordable hostel units thanks to a signed partnership between the university and the National Housing Corporation.
The MOU aims to enable the University to expand its accommodation capacity from the current 500 students to 3,000, out of over 12,000 students enrolled at the institution.
According to Vice Chancellor Prof. Joyce Agalo, the lack of adequate hostel units had locked students from key research ICT facilities and faced mounting insecurity outside campus.
Prof. Agalo said the project, which will see the construction of 3,000 conducive and sustainable hostel units within one year, is the first to be inked between a local University and the corporation.
“The construction of 3,000 hostel units will help us accommodate more students on the campus from the current 500 units out of 12,000 students enrolled on our institution,” said Prof. Agalo.
On his part, the Corporation Managing Director, David Mathu, said they will pump Sh1 billion towards the initial investment to operationalise the signed MOU with the Institution.
Speaking in Naivasha on Thursday, Mathu said the partnership will see the university benefit from low-cost, sustainable housing units and is part of the institution’s partnership to address the gap in housing in universities.
The MD said that through the strategic plan 2023-27, the corporation also seeks to construct over 110,000 housing units in the country as part of the Universal Housing Programme.
“We plan to inject Sh1 billion towards the initial operationalisation of the partnership between the university and the corporation to actualise the 3,000 rental units,” said Mathu.
In addition, the MD said the corporation is undertaking another 17 housing projects across the country, noting that it seeks to contribute 10 per cent to the one billion housing projects by the year 2017.
Consequently, Mathu said the Corporation has entered into a Public-Private International Financial Corporation (IFC) to undertake the construction of 3,000 units in Machakos County on 150 acres of land.
According to Mathu, the corporation has accommodated new technologies that promise low-cost housing amidst concerns over the high cost of construction in the country.
According to the Corporation Board Chairman Yusuf Shanzu, universities have been plagued with inadequate financing that requires a prompt solution.
Shanzu said that by signing the partnership, Machakos University will benefit from the ongoing low-cost hostel units as compared to the expensive private themed rental units.
“Kenyan Universities have been facing inadequate hostel units in the country, and this partnership speaks to the right decision”, said Shanzu.
By Erastus Gichohi
