Tag: Shelter Afrique

ByJULIE OWINO

NAIROBI, Kenya, Sept 29 – Pan-African housing development financier, Shelter Afrique has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with two Chinese construction firms, Amberton International Holdings, and Sichuan Huashi Enterprise Corporations E.A. LTD, aimed at scaling up the development of large-scale affordable housing projects in Kenya and other Shelter Afrique member States.

 

The agreement which is expected to boost Shelter Afrique’s mandate of providing decent and affordable housing in Africa was signed in Nairobi by Shelter Afrique Chief Executive Officer Andrew Chimphondah, Amberton International Holdings Director Nancy Yu, and Sichuan Huashi Enterprise Corporations E.A. LTD Managing Director Cao Zheng.

“As a company, our overriding strategy is the provision of affordable housing across our member States through public-private partnerships.  This strategic partnership with Amberton and Huashi will be key in expanding our projects across the continent as we draw from the experiences of the two companies. Shelter Afrique will work closely with Amberton International Holdings as a co-developer for specific large-scale, low-cost housing projects in Africa, which will be constructor by Sichuan Huashi Enterprise Corporations E.A. LTD,” Chimphondah said.

He noted that some off-take projects had been identified in Kenya and in other markets such as Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Ivory Coast, Senegal, and Nigeria where Shelter Afrique has existing project pipelines.

“Already we are in the process of securing a few projects in Kenya with the Department of Defense, the Kenya Police and the Civil Service, for which we expect to break ground this year. These take-off projects will be aligned with Kenya government affordable housing plan under the Big 4 Agenda, which seeks to develop 500,000 housing units by 2022,” Chimphondah said.

Chimphondah said the majority of African countries were already facing a housing crisis with the overall housing shortage estimated at 56 million housing units across the continent. Out of this, more than 90% are in the affordable housing bracket.

“We believe our partnership with Amberton and Huashi will deepen our impact on Kenya’s and by extension, Africa’s affordable housing value chain, in particular, the supply side,” Chimphondah said.

Shelter-Afrique is owned by 44 African countries, the African Development Bank, and the African Reinsurance Corporation (Africa-Re).

By SARA OKUORO

Pan-African housing development financier Shelter Afrique has entered into a strategic partnership with the World Bank aimed at addressing the affordable housing crisis evident across the continent.

The Sh20 million (USD200,000) Technical Assistance partnership will provide advisory services funded under the Joint Capital Markets Program (JCAP) aimed at supporting Shelter Afrique’s capital market program. 

The JCAP program is an initiative of the World Bank Group meant to create deep, efficient, and well-regulated local capital markets for expanded access to long-term, local-currency finance in key areas such as climate, housing and infrastructure.

“Shelter Afrique aims to build strategic partnerships and alliances with key industry players as part of its sustainable recovery and growth strategy,” said Andrew Chimphondah, Shelter Afrique Chief Executive Officer. “We are grateful to the World Bank for offering technical assistance support which will be key in completing our turn around program.”

The partnership will enhance Shelter Afrique’s institutional, operational and the technical capacity targeting the reinstatement of investment grade credit rating and a strong return to the capital markets.  

“We anticipate that this partnership will help to deepen ShAf’s impact on Kenya’s affordable housing value chain, in particular, the supply side and subsequently help to bring down the country’s housing deficit,” said Simon Walley, World Bank Lead Financial Sector Specialist.

African countries are currently facing a housing crisis driven by high population growth, increased urbanization, poor urban planning, dysfunctional land markets, rising construction costs, proliferation of informal settlements, and underdeveloped financial systems. 

Overall shortage of housing in Africa is estimated at 56 million housing units according to research from Shelter Afrique’s Centre of Excellence (CoE). 

Out of this, more than 90 per cent are in the affordable housing bracket. The study notes that the solution lies in a well-coordinated and collaborative effort among all stakeholders, including governments, multilateral institutions, non-profit organizations, and the private sector.