“Actually one investor has expressed interest to fund 100,000 units. The project is no longer a vision but a reality,” Mr Macharia said.
Although the project will start off in Nairobi, the government will spread it to other regions, with Nyeri set to get 2,000 units.
Recently, the government agreed to allow contributors earning more than Sh100,000 to benefit from the housing scheme in a turnaround decision.
Those earning over Sh100, 000 will use their savings to get mortgages with annual interest of seven percent to buy the affordable houses.
At seven percent per year, the pricing of the mortgages is cheaper than commercial rates that charge double-digit interest rates.
COTU OBJECTION
Speaking in Nyeri on Tuesday where he was inspecting ongoing projects, Mr Macharia did not explain how the deal was reached with Central Organisation of Trade Unions (Cotu) who had filed a case in bid to stop the levy.
Cotu filed an urgent application in December last year at the Employment and Labour Relations Court challenging the levy’s legality.
Justice Hellen Wasilwa granted the request, halting implementation of the tax designed to fund one of President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Big Four agenda projects.
Cotu Secretary General Francis Atwoli faulted the scheme which the government said will be deducted from employees basic salaries and remitted to the National Housing Development Fund.
In his application to stop the levy, Mr Atwoli said the scheme was too heavy a burden for Kenyan workers in wake of rising cost of living.
