- Kenyans have withdrawn Ksh2.56 billion from the Boma Yangu scheme.
- Refunds have increased 3.5 times since President Ruto took office.
- Refunds are rising faster than new savings, signalling weaker confidence.
Kenyans have pulled more than Ksh2.5 billion out of the government’s Boma Yangu housing savings scheme, as growing numbers of contributors abandon the programme and demand their money back. The scale of the exodus has raised fresh questions about public confidence in the Affordable Housing Programme, one of President William Ruto’s flagship initiatives.
Auditor General Nancy Gathungu’s special audit of the Boma Yangu portal covering July 2020 to May 2025, found that refunds have grown three and a half times since Ruto took office, a finding that is likely to sharpen scrutiny of how the scheme is being managed.
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The refunds now account for close to half of the Ksh5.47 billion raised through the platform since it launched. Withdrawals have accelerated sharply over the past year, more than tripling from Ksh788 million in May 2025 to Ksh2.56 billion in the months since.
Net savings have also grown over the same period, rising from Ksh926.4 million to Ksh3 billion. But refunds are increasing at a slightly faster pace than fresh contributions, a sign that more savers are choosing to exit the programme than to join it.
That shift comes even as the government continues to promote the scheme as central to its housing agenda, with more than 270,000 units currently under construction nationwide.
By Benedict Aoya
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