Land prices in Kilifi have increased by 50 percent driven by the construction of residential and commercial projects by real estate firms in the area.
The price of an acre of land has increased from Sh10 million to Sh20 million as demand rises from developers attracted by improved support infrastructure, the county government of Kilifi has said.
Centum’s subsidiary, Vipingo Development Limited (VDL) is developing apartments and maisonettes, food processing factory, shopping mall, warehouses and desalination plants on 10,254 acres in the county.
Vipingo Ridge is also constructing a 2,500 acres mixed-use development consisting of gated communities, golf course and holiday rentals development. Realtor Superior Homes Kenya, likewise, is putting up 372 affordable and luxurious two, three, and four-bedroom villas at Vipingo Pazuri.
“The presence of Centum here has made the value of this land increase. You could get land here for Sh10 million an acre, today you need Sh15 million to Sh20 million, and the value keeps increasing,” said Kilifi governor Amason Kingi.
“We have had a number of investors wanting to put their investments along this corridor because they have seen what Centum is doing and that has given them confidence to invest in Kilifi. There are those who are waiting to see main investors so that they can follow.”
Affordable land and construction material, coupled with increased attraction to the area by the middle class, have helped attract developers away from Mombasa, the traditional hub of investments in the coastal area.
In May, an impact survey commissioned by Centum showed that its Vipingo project had injected Sh5.5 billion into the Kilifi economy besides creating more than 3,000 jobs in the past two years.
Source: Business Daily
