Not for the money: Resisting urbanisation at all cost

Stuck in a time warp, Jane Kari is a widow clinging onto her piece of land despite the developments around her.

The proud owner of an eighth-acre piece in Ngurubani town, Kirinyaga County, she has resisted offers of Sh2 million from real-estate agents who have trained their sights on the region.

Here, the price of half an acre has shot up from just Sh300, 000 six years ago to Sh8 million. A fast-growing town surrounded by rice fields in the Mwea Irrigation Scheme, the scramble for prime land is slowly killing farming.

Kari’s plot is sandwiched between tall commercial buildings, an excellent location for developers. The mother of five, who inherited the land from her husband, has been enticed with much more to sell. But she won’t.

"Investors have been offering me Sh2 million but I won’t sell because I have nowhere to go with my children," says Ms Kari, 61.

"Not long ago, land was cheap here. But urbanisation has pushed up prices. Those who have acres and acres are smiling all the way to the bank," she adds.

I can only sell it in case of an emergency.

In Isiolo, the vast plains where livestock grazed for years are no more – divided into plots on which sit commercial properties.

Kirimi Lintari inherited a 50x100 plot at Kangutu area along the Isiolo-Moyale highway from his father.

On the plot sits an old timber house surrounded by multi-storey commercial buildings and upcoming rental houses. The plot can fetch him millions but he, too, is not keen on cashing in on the frenzy.

“I inherited this land from my father and I cannot sell it, no matter the current prices. I had planned to construct some rental houses but the plans were affected by Covid-19,” Mr Kirimi tells the Nation.

“I can only sell it in case of an emergency, but God forbid,” he adds.

Mr Kirimi is among those feeling the pressure from moneyed investors as urbanisation encroaches into the Isiolo plains.

The rapid growth of Isiolo town has taken a toll on the ancestral lands of pastoralists, where much of the new development is taking place.

The once dusty town is being transformed by mega projects. But lack of title deeds is an obstacle to the development of the residential and commercial properties.

Without the crucial land ownership documents, residents can’t fetch the right price for their property and are also unable to access bank loans to develop their land.

Reporting by George Munene, Waweru Wairimu and Regina Kinogu