Brick maker turns home ownership dream into reality

For Patrick Wainaina, the idea of mixing soil, quarry dust and a little cement to make construction bricks never looked like it would take off. But he is now convinced that this is the solution to turning the home ownership dreams for thousands of Kenyans into reality.

“We started this project three months ago. We use quarry dust, red soil and cement to make construction bricks targeting low-income earners who want cheap and decent houses,” Mr Wainaina told the Business Daily in an interview in Thika.

Through his company, Jungle Housing, Mr Wainaina said he partners with land owners to build homes using the cheap bricks. However, they have to lay the foundation.

“Constructing a one-roomed house would cost the land owner less than Sh200,000. This would take less than two weeks given we are working closely with our own engineers instead of outsourcing, thus avoiding delays,” he said.

For a three-bedroomed house, he said the costs rise up to Sh2 million. This is inclusive of construction materials and roofing. Their target, he said, is to construct 20 to 50 houses every month.

The company that started a few months ago is now producing nearly 2,000 bricks daily, said Mr Wainaina, who is also the founder of Jungle Nuts Company, a company that processes macadamia nuts, cashew nuts and peanuts. “The beauty with this kind of venture is that raw materials for making the bricks are readily available and come at no cost or a low price. For instance, one can get red soil for free from road construction sites.

“We also buy the red soil at Sh500 per tonne mainly from contractors in Kiambu. This helps us reduce the cost of the bricks, which sell at Sh40 a piece,” he said.

To make the bricks, they mix quarry dust, red soil and cement in a 50:40:10 ratio. The process involves putting five bags of quarry dust in a hydroponic machine, adding four bags of red soil and one bag of cement. Then they add water before the mixture is compressed.

Mr Wainaina said they were looking to create a conduit targeting individuals or Saccos that have huge tracts of land and need help to build cheap houses. The company is targeting National Police Service, which is in the process of building better and cheaper homes for the police.

“We are in business but at the same time we are seeking to address the housing problem. Owning a house has always been associated with huge spending,” Mr Wainaina.
Speaking to the Business Daily on the telephone from Angola, Mr Stephen Oundo, the chairman of the National Construction Authority, said expensive raw materials and land were holding back many people from owning houses.

‘‘I welcome the idea because any innovation that seeks to reduce costs of owning home should be welcome. Mortgages have become very expensive. This invention is possible because the raw materials are readily available thus reducing higher costs,” he said.

Mr Wainaina said he has employed 20 people and worked with eight clients so far. He adds they were also seeking to empower young people who are skilled in construction but cannot find work. “At Jungle Nuts Foundation, we do mentoring, job connection and idea financing and we want to transfer the talent to all our subsidiaries.”

He said they had an eye on helping counties solve their housing needs and create employment. Different organisations are seeking ways to meet the high demand of housing in Kenya.

Recently, the Habitat for Humanity International and MasterCard Foundation launched a  model focused on offering housing microfinance products markets in Ghana, Uganda, and Kenya.

The aim of the study is to deepen and strengthen understanding of Kenya’s low income housing sector in order to increase institutions’ ability to provide affordable products that promote access to housing for low income earners.

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