Land rate defaults drain Nairobi's revenue, Sakaja warns
The Governor is calling on all landowners to act now to avoid legal action and support the county’s goal of improving public services for all residents.
Nairobi County is losing billions in potential revenue as most landowners fail to pay land rates, Governor Sakaja Johnson has said, warning that the continued default is putting a heavy strain on service delivery.
The Governor on Wednesday revealed that out of 250,000 registered land parcels in Nairobi, only 50,000 are currently paying land rates.
This means four out of every five landowners are not contributing, leaving a small group to carry the entire financial burden.
"The biggest revenue earner in a city is property taxes. In Nairobi, we have 250,000 pieces of land, but only 50,000 landowners are paying land rates, so the burden falls on this small group. That is not sustainable," Sakaja stated during an interview on Citizen TV.
He explained that the county’s ability to fund key services is being hurt by the low compliance, as the needs of the population continue to grow while available resources shrink.
In a bid to recover lost revenue, the Governor announced a final extension of the land rates waiver to April 30th.
The waiver gives landowners a chance to pay without penalties before enforcement actions begin.
"We have extended the waiver to 30th April this month," he said. "Now that we have complete data on the 250,000 pieces of land, it’s time to collect what is due so that we can deliver services as a county. We’ve given enough time going forward, we shall enforce."
Governor Sakaja also warned that the county may start taking legal action against property owners who continue to ignore payments.
He noted that the law allows the county to clamp down on buildings if landowners refuse to pay.
"Buildings can be clamped. It is in the law. We would not want to get there. Let’s all take charge, we’ve given enough time to pay. Let’s not leave just a small percentage of landowners carrying the heavy luggage of land rates," he said.
With the grace period ending soon, the Governor is calling on all landowners to act now to avoid legal action and support the county’s goal of improving public services for all residents.