The government will prioritize allocating Social Housing units to individuals displaced by floods after being forced to vacate riparian lands, President William Ruto has announced.
Speaking in Njiru on Friday, Ruto revealed that once the Nairobi Rivers regeneration project is completed, construction of the homes will begin. He assured that all affected individuals are accounted for in government records.
“Those displaced from riparian areas will be the first beneficiaries of our Social Housing program. We have a complete list of those affected and their original locations,” he stated.

Ruto further disclosed that at least 50,000 housing units will be developed in the affected regions once a new sewer system is installed and the river cleanup is finalized.
“Our goal is to restore Nairobi’s rivers by removing waste, installing a 60-kilometer sewer line, and deepening the waterways. Following this, we will construct another 50,000 homes,” he explained.
The President is currently on a five-day tour of Nairobi, commissioning projects and evaluating progress on key development initiatives as part of his nationwide urban renewal agenda.
In May 2024, then-Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki (now Deputy President) reported that 40,000 households, comprising approximately 181,000 individuals, had voluntarily vacated riparian reserves along the Nairobi, Mathare, and Ngong Rivers.
The government had provided each household with Sh10,000 to facilitate relocation, with assurances that they would be first in line for affordable housing once the new units were ready.