The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) is seeking Sh3.5 billion to build a new headquarters away from Nairobi’s Central Business District, in a fresh push to reduce rent costs and shield its operations from frequent city protests.

Appearing before the Senate’s Justice and Legal Affairs Committee, IEBC Chief Executive Officer Marjan Hussein Marjan said the Commission plans to begin construction of the Uchaguzi Centre in July 2026, subject to funding.

Marjan explained that the new office would help the Commission cut down on high recurrent expenses, including rent and hiring of external venues for meetings, training, and material storage.

“The acquisition of the Commission’s premises would cut recurrent costs such as office space rent, hiring venues for commission activities, including meetings with stakeholders, nomination of candidates, training for staff and stakeholders, and storage/warehousing for strategic and non-strategic materials. In the long run, this would save Kenyan taxpayers’ money,” Marjan told the committee chaired by Bomet Senator Hillary Sigei.

IEBC currently rents office space at Anniversary Towers, a building owned by Kenya Re, where it pays at least Sh100 million annually. This figure excludes additional spending on hiring venues and securing warehouses.

Under the current plan, IEBC has requested an initial Sh201 million in the financial year ending June 2027 and Sh602 million in the following year to kick-start the project.

This is not the first time the Commission has attempted to secure a permanent base. In March 2021, IEBC floated a tender for land measuring at least five acres and located more than 20 kilometres from the CBD. The land was required to be accessible by road and built on stable, gently sloping ground.

The idea dates back to 2013, when then-chairperson Issack Hassan asked Parliament for Sh800 million to buy a dedicated office block, citing congestion, security concerns, and high rent then standing at Sh48 million annually.

In 2018, Wafula Chebukati also backed the relocation effort, stressing that owning premises would lower operational costs and improve logistical planning, especially around election periods.

“The relocation out of the central business district will see minimal disruptions to other activities in the city centre in the event of any picketing and demonstrations,” Chebukati said at the time.

He noted that frequent protests outside Anniversary Towers had disrupted businesses and affected IEBC operations.

“The IEBC is, of course, an independent organisation with many stakeholders and often some are dissatisfied and resort to protests. We feel that being based in the CBD has done a disservice to other businesses and so we need to move elsewhere,” he said.

Ahead of the 2017 elections, the Commission's location became a flashpoint, with anti-IEBC protests led by the National Super Alliance (Nasa) disrupting activities in the city centre. Demonstrators accused the Commission of bias in favour of the ruling Jubilee Party.

Earlier, the Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (Cord) also held weekly protests demanding the Commission’s disbandment, underlining the vulnerability of its CBD location.

At the time, former Starehe MP Charles Njagua proposed relocating IEBC to Bomas of Kenya, warning that repeated protests were hurting Nairobi’s economy.

If the Uchaguzi Centre is built as planned, it will serve as the Commission’s permanent home, improve operational efficiency, and shield Nairobi’s commercial heart from future protest-related disruption.