Affordable steel houses for low-income earners

Rigid building laws that prohibit the use of alternative materials are partly to blame for the rapid rise in building costs, locking out the poor from home ownership. But with the entry of options such as steel engineered buildings and a revision of the Building Code, this is set to change, writes ALLAN OLINGO.

Even though the Building Code has for years not recognised steel structures as fit for permanent residential units, Kenyans may now embrace it as an alternative to the traditional construction methods.