This archive report was first published on 30 September 2021.
Kenya's construction sector is plagued by a culture of shortcuts and unprofessionalism, leading to a spate of building collapses across the country.
On September 13, 2021, a three-storey building in Mamboleo, Kisumu County, collapsed, killing three people. Just over a week later, a two-storey building under construction in the same area collapsed, claiming more lives.
The collapses have raised questions about the role of inspectors and county governments in ensuring that buildings are constructed safely and in compliance with regulations.
Tom Oketch, chairman of the Institution of Construction Project Managers of Kenya, blamed inspectors and county governments for abdicating their duty to supervise structures.
'People will want to take shortcuts when building so as to cut on costs and time, and so if there is not enough supervision of structures they are all condemned to fall,' he said.
Oketch also accused the National Construction Authority (NCA) of being partly to blame for the collapses, citing instances where people involved in construction were not certified by the authority.
The Institute of Quantity Surveyors of Kenya said that in the Kinoo building's collapse, the developers had sought the services of unlicensed people to cut costs.
Joseph Njomo, Principal Physical Planner with the County Government of Nyeri, outlined the steps for development control and enforcement, including the submission of building plans to the county government for approval and the registration of approved plans with the NCA.
However, experts say that the problem stems from the 'do-it-yourself' mentality where developers turn a blind eye on professionalism.
Engaging quacks for one's design only leads to poor, underwhelming work, they say.
There are often cases of incorrect analysis of loads, which leads to poor sizing of members (beams and columns) and hence providing an avenue for imbalances in load distribution within the building.
This leads to structural failure.
