PS Hinga defends housing jobs data, says programme has created 640,440 jobs

Housing Principal Secretary Charles Hinga has defended the government’s Affordable Housing Programme, saying it has so far generated 640,440 jobs using a cautious estimation model, and rejecting claims that official data contradicts the figures.

Speaking on Tuesday, Hinga said the programme relies on a conservative formula that assigns two full-time equivalent jobs to each housing unit—one direct and one indirect—insisting this approach avoids exaggerating employment impact. He pushed back against concerns raised after data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics was interpreted in sections of the media as inconsistent with government claims.

The PS explained that KNBS reported 238,000 construction jobs in 2025, a figure that reflects annual employment across the entire construction sector. He noted that broader estimates place total sector employment, including indirect roles, at about 765,000 jobs.

He emphasised that these figures should not be confused with housing-specific data, as they include jobs from roads and other infrastructure projects. He also clarified that KNBS reports yearly employment numbers, while the Affordable Housing Programme tracks cumulative jobs created since its rollout in 2023.

“So the KNBS number everybody is reading has nothing to do with housing. It is the whole sector that has been reported,” the PS noted.

Hinga said earlier claims suggesting that 283,000 jobs had been created under the housing programme were inaccurate and stemmed from a misreading of sector-wide statistics.

He added that the government adopted its estimation model from global benchmarks, including studies by the World Bank, but deliberately chose a lower range to ensure credibility. While some international findings suggest housing projects can create up to eight jobs per unit through wider economic linkages, Kenya settled on a simpler and more cautious ratio.

“For purposes of reporting, we go with one full-time equivalent direct and one full-time equivalent indirect job,” the PS noted.

This method was first applied when about 220,000 housing units were under construction, yielding an estimated 440,000 jobs at the time. As more units have been added, the cumulative figure has now risen to 640,440 jobs.

Hinga acknowledged that newer studies indicate the multiplier effect could be higher, with estimates of up to 3.26 jobs per unit, but said the government continues to use the lower baseline to avoid overstating outcomes.

He described the programme as supporting employment across different parts of the economy, from raw material production to financial services. According to the PS, activities such as quarrying, transport, and cement production all contribute to job creation linked to housing projects.

“For example, cement jobs start from mining, in quarries. You cannot easily attribute every job to a single unit, but portions are attributable,”Hinga highlighted.

He added that jobs in sectors such as banking and mortgage processing also form part of the wider economic effect, even though they may not be captured in construction site data.

Hinga noted that measuring employment in large-scale infrastructure programmes remains complex, with most estimates relying on accepted international models as more precise systems are developed.

He said the job figures are expected to keep rising as more housing units are completed and new projects begin, positioning the programme as a key source of employment and economic activity within the construction sector.