Title:
RESOURCE CAPACITY AND IMPLEMENTATION OF AFFORDABLE RESIDENTIAL HOUSING PROJECTS IN MACHAKOS COUNTY, KENYA

Authors:
Gregory Mutuku Nthenge and Reuben Wambua Kikwatha

Abstract:
Many urban dwellers in Kenya live in informal settlements because they cannot afford to rent an appropriate home due to the country's housing scarcity. This problem has not been satisfactorily addressed by prior housing strategies. The Affordable Housing Programme, which considers the various socioeconomic classes in the population, was implemented by the Kenyan government in 2017. By considering how social and economic elements interact, this programme seeks to address the complicated issue of housing affordability. Overall, it shows a deliberate attempt to offer efficient and equitable housing options for the diverse urban population and indicates a change from earlier ineffective housing plans. With a focus on Kenya's Machakos County, this study sought to examine the relationship between resource availability and the execution of affordable housing projects. Informed by the resource-based perspective theory, general system theory, and programme theory, it took into consideration three primary independent variables: financial resources, human resources, and social capital resources. Out of a total population of 1262 stakeholders, 297 were chosen at random for the study's descriptive survey design, which included questionnaires and interview guides to gather data. Software called SPSS version 25.0 was used to analyze the data. The null hypothesis, which claimed there was no significant association between resource capacity and the implementation of affordable housing projects, was rejected as a result of the data, which showed a positive relationship between the dependent and independent variables. Financial capacity had the greatest influence among the independent factors, whereas human resource capital had the least. According to the findings, it was suggested that stronger links be made between financial institutions and national and local governments to maintain a steady flow of financial resources, which were shown to be a key factor in project implementation. The county administration was urged to improve employee development programmes and career paths for those involved in project execution. To ensure the distribution of current project information, stakeholders were advised to hold regular consultative sessions. To enable thorough comparisons, the report suggested undertaking equivalent studies in other counties with comparable affordable housing developments. In addition, it suggested monitoring and evaluation-focused research to address unresolved issues like how simple loan payback for the projects would be.

Keywords:
Resource Capacity, Project Implementation, Housing Projects, Affordable Residential Housing