Ruto Orders Undeveloped Athi River Land Titles Revoked
President William Ruto has ordered the Ministry of Land to revoke titles of land that have not been developed in Athi River for over 10 years.
Speaking at the launch of Square Pharmaceuticals Kenya at the Export Processing Zones (EPZ) in Athi River, Ruto stated that speculators who have been holding land without developing should be kicked out and the parcels transferred to EPZ.
Ruto also ordered that part of the land that was grabbed from the East Africa Portland Cement Company (EAPCC) and which the court directed be returned to the company should also be transferred to the EPZ.
Ruto noted that about 1,000 acres should be transferred from EAPCC to EPZ to enable the government’s efforts to expand the facility.
The directive is likely to encounter opposition from squatters who have engaged the cement factory in a lengthy legal battle for years.
“I have given clear instructions to the management here that all speculators, people who have held titles to pieces of land for 10, 15, 20, 30 years without developing them should be revoked so that we can give it to people who want to use this facility,” according to him.
“I am informed that we now have an extra 250 acres of land that were originally occupied by speculators and we can bring additional pieces of land, additional space into the manufacturing space here in EPZ, Athi River.”
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“We have now been cleared by the courts to occupy the land adjacent to Portland Cement’s EPZ.” By my directives, either 1,000 or 1,500 acres of this land will be added to the EPZ to make room for more businesses to set up shop in Kenya.”
In the initial phase, the government is working around the clock to establish Special Economic Zones in Thika, Eldoret, Busia, and Nakuru. Through this, investors can profit from the initiative by establishing businesses in the affected areas.
“I implore companies setting up camp in Kenya to look at the opportunities that exist in the East African community where we have close to 400 million people and to look at the opportunities in COMESA and look at combined opportunities in the Continent.”
In addition, the president assured investors that the water problem in the Athi River would be resolved upon completion of the Northern Collector Tunnel.
“Because it has been brought to my attention that residents are experiencing difficulty gaining access to water, I have instructed the Ministry of Water to ensure that the Northern Collector Tunnel is completed. “We are in the final stages of constructing a dedicated pipeline to Athi River so that residents and businesses have access to the necessary resources to support manufacturing in this region,” he said.
Ruto Orders Undeveloped Athi River Land Titles Revoked
