Assessment of the Realization of the Right to Housing in Kenya 2011-2012

This report is the second Economic and Social Rights Centre (Hakijamii) Annual Assessment on the Realization of the Right to Adequate Housing in Kenya. The report assesses the actions taken by the relevant government agencies to progressively achieve the right to adequate housing, especially in the period 2011-2012 in relation to Kenya’s existing domestic, regional and international obligations. It also touches on other areas of economic and social rights as constitutive of the right to adequate housing. The document concludes by making recommendations to various relevant actors on how to sustain and improve progress towards realization of the right to adequate housing. This report is divided into three parts. The first section reviews the nature of Kenya’s obligations in relation to the right to adequate housing. It addresses the right to adequate housing under international law and Kenyan law and policy. The second part assesses the status of realization of the right to housing in Kenya, by reviewing trends in forced evictions, housing discrimination and participation in public decision-making processes relating to housing, among other areas. Part three provides conclusions and recommendations.