How The August 2022 elections in Kenya will impact the Real estate market in Taita Taveta.

Mitchell IgaJune 27, 202238 Comments

Taita Taveta County has a population of 155,716 registered voters and 354 polling stations. The Taita and Taveta communities are considered indigenous, so the county was named after them. However, there are more people from other backgrounds who have found home here in the cosmopolitan county and form a substantial voting block that politicians want to court. For instance, political analyst Christopher Musyoka says in the 2017 gubernatorial election, Governor Granton Samboja was propelled into power due to his Wiper ticket. In this article, we want to look at how this year’s general election will impact the real estate in Taita Taveta County.

Facts about Taita Taveta

Taita Taveta County is located approximately 360 km southeast of Nairobi and 200 km northwest of Mombasa. It’s one of the six counties in the Jumuiya ya Kaunti za Pwani economic bloc. Mwatate is its administrative capital, as well as Voi and Wundanyi. The county covers an area of 17084.1 km²with 10,649.9 km² being within Tsavo East and Tsavo West National Parks, providing a major tourism destination for tourists from around the world who come to see Kenya’s famous wildlife—including elephants, rhinos, lions, and leopards as well as visit Lake Jipe and Chala during their time in Mwatate.

Places to visit in Taita Taveta

1. The Tsavo West National Park

This park is home to a diverse ecosystem that comprises open grasslands, scrub lands, acacia woodlands, belts of riverine vegetation, and rocky ridges. The park offers you many attractions such as diverse bird and plant species, elephants, hippos, rhinos, leopards, buffalos, cheetahs, and lions. It is also ideal for cave exploration, game viewing, nature trails, and camping.

2. Taita Hills

The hills are known for their unique forests and diverse species of birds located in the forests within the hills.

3. Lake Chala

A crater lake that features a beautiful landscape with varied bird species on the Kenyan Tanzanian border.

4. Lake Jipe

The Lake also covers the border of Kenya and Tanzania with an area of approximately 30 square kilometers and is known for its unique water birds, endemic fish, lake edge swamps, and wetland swamps.

These attraction sites have really impacted the real estate market in Taita Taveta especially the hotel business in a positive way.

Taita Taveta Town

In the recent past, there has been a major facelift for towns in Taita Taveta. Voi and Mwatate towns have got a major facelift courtesy of the Kenya Urban Support Programme sponsored by the World Bank. The six-year program is expected to benefit Mwatate and Voi towns in infrastructural development, economic setup, and general modernization. Mwatate is earmarked for county headquarters while Voi is at the forefront of economic growth in the region. This is expected to improve the real estate market in Mwatate Town.

Raila Odinga while in Taita Taveta County said that he intends to make the county a great economic hub since it is a border county with Tanzania. If implemented more investors are expected to invest in the county which will create demand for housing.

Estates in Taita Taveta

Most residential areas in Taita Taveta are rural settlements.

Some of the villages in Taita Taveta are:

Bungule
Bura
Campi ya Bibi
Champia
Chala
Chawia
Kigombo
Kimala

Taita Taveta Real Estate Market

Raila Odinga has pledged to bring Taveta back to life by introducing a free market and reviving the Voi-Mwatate-Taveta railway line for easy transportation of goods and farm produce to the Port of Mombasa and the rest of the world. These economic and infrastructural developments will be key to opening the county for rapid industrial growth which will in turn impact the real estate market in Taita Taveta.

On the other hand, William Ruto has promised that his government will buy land from absentee landlords and settle them squatters to address the perennial land issues in Taita Taveta and the larger coast region. If implemented, this will address the land question that has been a problem since independent Kenya.

Hotels in Taita Taveta

Tourism is one of the main economic activities which impacts greatly on the real estate market in Taita Taveta County. For this matter, there are many hotel investments in the county which include the following:

Finch Hattons Luxury Hotel Tented Camp
Severin Safari Camp
Satao Camp
H12 Kipalo Hills Camp
Sarova Taita Hills Game Lodge
Kilaguni Serena Safari Lodge
Sarova Salt Lick Game Lodge

Roads in the country have been facing upgrades in the recent past thanks to various government initiatives.

Most road projects that had remained stalled have been acted upon by the government pending some.

The Construction sector in Taita Taveta

Taita Taveta County is booming. The once dull town is basking in glory as the Taita Taveta County headquarters, and it is now one of the fastest-growing towns in the region. It has a new modern market with a capacity to accommodate about 100 traders, streetlights, and cabro roads funded by the World Bank to the tune of about Sh30 million.

When you arrive in the town, located 23 kilometers east of Voi town, you see a bustling town full of activity. Investors are moving in to cash in on business opportunities in the real estate, hotel industry, and banking and energy industries. In addition, the town that is located along the Voi-Taveta international road was recently elevated to municipality status by Governor Granton Samboja. Huge investments have come up at Soko Ya Zamani, Jombo, and Mwisho Wa Lami among other areas which have added impetus to economic growth.

As President Uhuru Kenyatta ends his term, the ghosts of stalled projects in Taita Taveta County are likely to cast a shadow on his regime. Some of the stalled projects 35 billion Minima II project, 300 million Ikanga Airstrip, and 60 million Voi Gemstone Value Addition Centre. The two main presidential contestants have promised the residents that they will complete the stalled projects.

Conclusion

Taita Taveta, being an Azimio la Umoja stronghold according to the Infotrak polls, may benefit more if the coalition wins the election. The coalition has promised the residents many goodies which may have a positive impact on the real estate market in Taita Taveta if implemented.

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