The Housing Minister also said the poverty stricken people of Kenya are the “most forgotten of Kenya’s population”.

Incomes and Low Cost Housing do not add up.

So one has to wonder how, when as of 2010 67.2% (World Bank 2005) of Kenyans earned less than $2.00 USD per day how $45,ooo USD seems to fit in the low cost housing category. The simple fact is it doesn’t.

Consider this: A person in the US making $50,000 per year with no debt and no savings can technically afford a home 3-4 times their annual income. This would suggest that affordable housing would be around $150,000 to $200,000 USD. Comparatively at $2.00 USD per day the annual income would be about $1,200 USD and an affordable low cost housing range would be about $3,600 to $4,800 USD. This is a very long way away from the $45,000 low cost housing units be discussed.

So what can you purchase in the US for $4,800 dollars; a house, a car? How about a couple of flat screen televisions. Yes indeed. So this then brings up two important concerns. How do we make low cost housing affordable and how to we lower the cost of housing to the point where poor people living in poverty can afford the home?

Both of these challenges are what Shelter the world is focused on. We are raising the awareness of the housing problems in the world and are developing affordable solutions to use housing as an income producing activity for those living in poverty at the same time making available truly adequate low cost housing.