Kisumu will once again play host to a Homes Expo that is targeting the stakeholders within the real estate industry in the Western Kenya region, writes ALLAN OLINGO

The 5th edition of the Kisumu Homes Expo will be held next week from June 22 – 24 at Aga Khan Hall, Kisumu.  The expo’s theme, “Harnessing our potential,” is inspired by variety of human skills, technology and materials within the western Kenya region.

“We are offering exhibitors increased traffic necessitated by intense and uniquely contextualised marketing campaign targeting the entire western Kenyan region.  This includes the sugar belts and the tea zones,” says Aban Eba the organiser of this expo.

According to Eba, they are actively engaging the Kenya Diaspora through the interactive Kisumu property market website and other IT frontiers so as to make it different.

“In this edition, the exhibitors will be offered evaluation reports from the public in their raw form. Visitors will be encouraged to fill in evaluation forms upon completion of their visit,” he offers.

Housing Shortage

For a long time, Kisumu has suffered disturbing housing shortage and this has made renting any house in Kisumu very expensive compared to other towns of similar status like Eldoret and Nakuru.

Says Eba: “This means that landlords in Kisumu have benefitted greatly while the tenants continue to suffer. This expo is part of our campaigns to encourage investors to put up residential units for rental purposes in order to meet the housing demand.”

In addition, the expo encourages individuals to put up their own houses and the organisers say that the available options to potential homeowners will be exhibited during the expo. 

“We have also positively positioned Kisumu as a peaceful town to counter the negative publicity that the town has suffered in the past. With this, we have assured investors of the potential of the property industry in Kisumu,” he says in reference to the post election violence of 2007/08.

Main targets

The Kisumu expo is targeting those that are directly and indirectly involved in the property industry, who includes developers, mortgage providers, property agents, building material providers constructors, interior decorators and security providers amongst others.

So will this edition really address the low cost housing challenges facing a majority of the population residing within this region?

“We are passionate about low-cost housing because Kisumu is surrounded by slums and other unplanned settlements. We encourage low-cost housing developers to venture in Kisumu and showcase their products,” says Eba.

Kisumu Homes Expo is the pioneer of the Holiday Home Concept and it is for this reason that the exhibitors are encouraged to look beyond the traditional Nairobi market.

Says Eba: “We were aware that the current urbanites enjoy the convenience of urban life, hence when retirement sets in, they still want to maintain their urban lifestyle but in less stressful towns that are culturally convenient to them. Kisumu lively ticks all the boxes in this regard.

Currently, Kisumu has about have five enormous developments coming up and there are also individuals putting up residential units and flats that will eventually stabilize the rental situation.

“Kenyans in Diaspora have shown great interest in the region and for some time now, they have been investing in his region having been put off Nairobi because of cost,” says Eba.

Eba says one of the challenges has been getting adequate sponsorship from the stakeholders like the City council so as to help in achieving the desired publicity.

“A key stakeholder such as the Kisumu Municipal Council has always shied away from participating yet they hold the answers to the many challenges that Kisumu faces,” he laments.

According to Eba, they are expecting all that are interested in the property industry within the western region, but so far their main sponsors are Kenya Power, with others being KUSCO, Crown Berger, Ounga Commercial Agencies.

“We are also proud to have roped in National Bank of Kenya, Metrotiles, the Commercial Bank of Africa and the East Africa Glass Mart as our first time exhibitors,” says Eba.