Mombasa County Government has unveiled a plan to resolve historical land injustices by operationalising the Ardhi Fund, which has been allocated Sh50 million in the 2025/2026 financial year, aimed at securing land ownership and ending perennial evictions.
Governor Abdulswamad Nassir has signed into law the Public Finance Management (Mombasa County Ardhi Fund) Regulations, 2024, to promote access to affordable housing and safeguard residents against unlawful evictions.
Land is a ticking time bomb in the coastal city, Mombasa has long been synonymous with land disputes that often lead to forced evictions and prolonged court battles. In every election cycle, land ownership remains one of the most politically charged issues used to sway voters.
Speaking during World Habitat Day celebrations on Monday, organised by Haki Yetu Organisation, County Executive Committee Member (CECM) for Land, Urban Planning and Housing, Mohamed Hussein, said the County is committed to ensuring secure land tenure, inclusive urban planning, and sustainable housing solutions under this year’s theme, “Urban Crisis Response.”
He explained that the Ardhi Fund will function as a revolving fund, enabling house owners to pay the County Government monthly land rates, while compensating landowners once both parties reach mutual agreements.
“The country is governed by law, which clearly stipulates that a landowner is the one with a title deed. If you have a title deed, you’re the owner, but we are cognizant that some people have built on other people’s lands,” stated CECM Hussein.
He stressed that while landowners have legal rights through title deeds, occupants who have developed properties also deserve protection for their investments.
“As a County Government, we want to ensure everyone gets their rights, which is why we established the Ardhi Fund to be mediators. We want the parties to agree through mediation without chaos or war of words,” he said
The CECM also pledged to protect all gazetted public landing sites and identify unregistered ones for formalisation.
He revealed that the County aims to scale up the issuance of title deeds from the current 2,500 to 30,000 by 2027.
“We aim to protect the landing sites. We need to make this city habitable,” he assured, calling for concerted efforts from all stakeholders.
Peter Kiama, Executive Director of Haki yetu organisation, urged the County Government to close over 70 illegal sites and to improve the living conditions in the over 72 unregulated informal settlements.
“The majority of our urban residents live in tenuous situations, many looking over their shoulder over the threat of eviction, unsure of whether they will be able to bring up their children in a stable environment,” he said.
The Executive Director also called for the enactment of the Eviction Bill of 2012, for the County Government to give clarity on the modalities of implementing the Ardhi Fund and for the National Government to prioritise the informal settlers in the Affordable Housing Programme.
Dorris Dama, a resident of Kisauni Sub-County, noted that the community lives in fear of eviction due to historical land injustices. She cited an ongoing tension on the 4320-acre Gamaka land, alleging that it has been taken over by private entities.
“The community, for the last 20 years, has struggled in pursuit of justice because the land belongs to their forefathers,” she stated, urging the National Land Commission to move with speed to resolve the historical land cases.
She blamed local leaders for not having goodwill to resolve the land cases, as their petitions to the Senate and County Assembly have not been acted upon.
“As a community, we are saying enough is enough. We will only elect leaders who will stand by issues. We are not here to feed party figures that will not assist the citizens because that is what we have seen for quite a long time. We will address our issues ourselves,” she stated.
Abdulrahman Juma, a fisherman, raised alarms that private developers have started to encroach on beach lands by extending their perimeter walls, leaving fishermen with no landing sites.
“Some people now claim to own the beaches. If we are not careful, they will beacon off land right up to the waterline,” he warned.
By Sadik Hassan
