Nairobi’s South B Techno-Centre: New Sh2.66B Tender Awarded to Finish Stalled Kirdi Project

The skeletal towers at the corner of Lusakas road and Dunga has not been in what you'd call a good shape- but at least somewhat noticeable - concrete landmark in Nairobi's South B neighbourhood for a decade now . Originally it was supposed to be the nerve centre for all of Kenya's industrial and technological ambitions, but the Kenya Industrial Research & Development Institute (Kirdi) project has been stuck in limbo for years, the victim of unpaid fees and shifting budgets.

But all that looks set to change in 2026, with a fresh injection of cash and a change in leadership at the construction site starting to gather some real momentum. That is, a multibillion-shilling allocation is on its way and a new boss has taken over down at the site, so it looks like this state-of-the-art facility might actually get finished after all.

1. Who is Kinglsey Construction?

As they try to get the stalled project back on track, the Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) has handed the main construction contract to a company called Kingsley Construction Company. They've got a big job ahead of them, but at least they have a decent budget to work with.

• How much is it going to cost? They've got a Sh2.66 billion contract to finish off the research and testing facilities.

• How long will it take? The new guys are hoping to hand over a completed project by 2028, or at least within the next two years.

• Who owns the company? Not a lot is known about Kingsley Construction, but what little we do know suggests that it's a family business, with one bloke called Ramesh Devshi Varsani owning 99% of the shares and his better half Hansaben Ramesh Varsani owning the remaining 1%.

2. The Rising Cost of Delay

And just like hundreds of projects that stall with a new regime, the financial trajectory of the Kirdi techno-centre serves as a classic example of how project stalls can lead to a massive cost escalations. What started as a Sh3.9 billion dream in the mid-2010s has nearly tripled in price.

3. What's All This About? A Look at the Vision

Even after all the delays, the blueprint for the South B facility remains one of the most ambitious in the whole of East Africa. This isn't just some boring old office block, its actually designed to be this fully self-sustaining "ecosystem" for technology and research.

The Building Blocks:

• Three Tower Blocks: Designed to withstand modern safety standards, including the odd wind load and earthquake. Not exactly the most exciting stuff, but still pretty important.

• Commercial Foothold: Three floors of showrooms, retail shops and the like.

• Conferences and Learning: One big plenary hall, an amphitheatre, some lecture rooms and a few theatres.

• A Place to Stay: The facility will have a restaurant and some accommodation units, a bit like a three-star hotel, to host any visiting researchers or tech consultants who come to town.

• Underground Infrastructure: And beneath it all, three basement floors for parking, a storm drain system and all that sort of thing.

4. The 80% Conundrum

For years, people have been trying to get a grip on just how far along the project is, but at last, the Kirdi board has confirmed that it is, in fact, around 80% complete. So what's the problem then? It's not like it's finished or anything - the "missing 20%" is all the most expensive and complicated bits: the interior and exterior finishes, lab equipment and the like.

It's been a disaster waiting to happen: the previous contractor upped sticks in 2022 and left the site to rot for four years.

5. Why This Matters

This Kirdi techno-centre is central to Kenya's dreams of becoming a middle-income, industrialised nation. By providing a central hub for:

1. Industrial Research: All that stuff about testing new manufacturing techniques.

2. Tech Incubation: Giving room for startups to prototype their ideas.

3. International Collaboration: Hosting all sorts of international tech summits in its fancy amphitheatre.

And just looking at every angle, the project is somewhat overpriced, for Sh.9.3 billion is a lot of cash to spend on a single project, but I guess the government thinks that it's better to finish it off and actually make use of the Sh5 billion that's already been sunk into it rather than letting it just sit there and rot.