Safaricom PLC has secured a contract to provide fibre internet connectivity for the government's Affordable Housing Programme, with the rollout beginning at the 14,000-unit Mukuru housing project in Nairobi.
Under the agreement, the telecommunications company will install pre-connected broadband in all homes at the development before expanding the service to affordable housing projects under construction across the country as the government works towards delivering 500,000 housing units in all 47 counties by June 2029.
The deal was disclosed by Vodacom Group, Safaricom's South African parent company, and represents another addition to Safaricom's expanding public sector portfolio.
According to the deal, the contract covers the supply of fibre internet infrastructure for the government's target of 500,000 affordable housing units across all 47 counties by June 2029.
The housing units will be connected through Wi-Fi Bamba, a tokenised fibre broadband product priced at Sh800. The service offers speeds of up to 15Mbps and can support three devices simultaneously.
The product is designed as a plug-and-play solution using a single cable, which is expected to reduce deployment time and installation costs compared with conventional fibre systems that rely on point-to-multipoint access and cable splicing.
The deal indicates that Wi-Fi Bamba is significantly cheaper than Safaricom's standard Home Fibre packages, which start at Sh2,999 for 40Mbps.
The service is aimed at lower-income households, particularly those with irregular incomes who may find it difficult to maintain fixed monthly broadband subscriptions.
Safaricom is expected to replicate the pre-connected broadband model in affordable housing developments nationwide as construction progresses.
The contract further strengthens the company's role in government-linked digital infrastructure projects.
Safaricom's existing public sector portfolio already includes the digitisation of the Social Health Authority and the National Surveillance, Communication and Control System.
The government holds a 20% stake in Safaricom, giving it significant influence over the telecommunications company.
The Affordable Housing Programme is one of the government's flagship initiatives and seeks to deliver 500,000 housing units by June 2029.
Based on the target timeline, approximately 124,500 housing units would need to be completed annually from July 2025 in order to meet the overall goal.
The broadband component is intended to ensure that housing units are internet-ready when residents move in, rather than requiring separate installation after occupancy.
The deal also states that Safaricom plans to introduce hourly, daily and weekly tokenised Wi-Fi access options later this year in Kenya and Ethiopia.
The planned model is based on the country's pay-as-you-go mobile data structure and is intended to provide more flexible internet access for households that cannot commit to monthly subscriptions.
The fibre contract positions Safaricom as a key connectivity provider within the government's nationwide affordable housing rollout.