Harambee Stars’ Farouk Shikalo Appeals to President Ruto: “Include Footballers in Affordable Housing”

Kenya’s housing conversation just took a powerful turn — from the pitch to policy. In a heartfelt public appeal, Harambee Stars goalkeeper Farouk Shikalo is calling on President William Ruto and the Ministry of Housing to consider footballers and other informal youth professionals for inclusion in the Affordable Housing Programme (AHP). Shikalo’s statement, shared after a Harambee Stars training session this week, sparked both applause and debate on accessibility, equity, and the place of athletes in national development agendas. ????️ "We represent Kenya globally. Many of us live in rented houses despite years of service to the country. Mr. President, we ask to be considered for Affordable Housing just like teachers, doctors, and civil servants." – Farouk Shikalo, Harambee Stars Goalkeeper

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Harambee Stars’ Farouk Shikalo Appeals to President Ruto: “Include Footballers in Affordable Housing”

What Is the Affordable Housing Programme (AHP)?

The AHP is a key pillar of President Ruto’s Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA). Its goal is to:

Construct 250,000 housing units annually
Prioritize urban informal settlement dwellers
Create jobs in construction and related sectors
Enable dignified, low-cost homeownership for Kenyans earning below KSh 150,000/month

Cost of units ranges from:

KSh 1.5M – 2.5M for one-bedroom
KSh 2.8M – 3.5M for two-bedroom
KSh 4M+ for three-bedroom units

Payment options include:

Tenant Purchase Scheme (TPS)
Mortgage via KMRC
Savings through the Housing Levy (1.5% of gross pay)

KBN Analysis: Do Footballers Qualify?

Criteria	Most Footballers	Status
Registered PAYE contributors	❌ Most are paid via clubs or match allowances
Access to mortgage financing	❌ Low credit profile or unstable income
Monthly income < KSh 150,000	✅ Majority earn between KSh 30K–120K
Registered under SACCO/Housing Co-op	❌ Few are organized
Have national identification	✅ Yes
Registered in eCitizen	✅ Likely

Gap Identified: Many athletes earn within the income range but are excluded from housing eligibility because they are not formally taxed or do not contribute to the Housing Levy.

Farouk's Appeal: Not Just Sentimental — It’s Structural

His request sheds light on a systemic oversight:

Athletes, artists, and entertainers serve Kenya, often informally.
They lack formal job contracts or pensionable status.
Yet, they suffer the same urban housing pressures as civil servants or hustlers.

Policy Blind Spot: Kenya’s housing strategy focuses heavily on salaried workers and largely ignores informal high-impact professionals like sportspeople.

KBN Insight: Footballer Housing Insecurity Is Real

Many current and former footballers:

Live in rented units in places like Umoja, Githurai, and Rongai
Face eviction or default when out of contract
Have no pension, no medical, and no home

“When you retire from national team football, you're basically starting from scratch. Affordable Housing could be a game-changer,” said a KPL club captain who requested anonymity.

What Other Countries Do

Country	Housing Support for Athletes
Nigeria	National Housing for retired Super Eagles players (Abuja)
South Africa	Home ownership support via SAFA and government-linked schemes
Ghana	Youth sports housing fund launched for informal athletes
Rwanda	National players prioritized for Kigali urban housing lottery

Kenya has no structured post-retirement housing or asset-building pathway for footballers — unless they succeed abroad or invest personally.

Reactions from the Football Fraternity

“He’s absolutely right. We are national heroes during qualifiers, then forgotten after final whistles.”

– Anthony Kimani, Former Tusker FC midfielder

“Let’s not just clap for them on TV. Let’s give them a key and an address.”

– Tweet by @DamaYouthReformsKE

“Affordable housing isn’t a privilege — it’s a right. Especially for those who uplift Kenya on global stages.”

– Activist, Urban Justice Nairobi

What Can Be Done? KBN Policy Recommendations

Action	Description
Create an Athlete Housing Quota	Set aside 1–2% of every affordable housing project for informal national representatives (sports, arts, etc.)
Allow voluntary housing levy contribution	Let informal earners contribute to the housing fund and qualify
Recognize federations like FKF	Let Football Kenya Federation register players into SHA and AHP
Link with Retirement Benefits Authority (RBA)	Build a unified system for pension + housing access for sportspeople
Audit ex-national team players’ needs	Identify urgent cases of former players in housing crisis

KBN Data Snapshot

Metric	Value
Active Harambee Stars players (2025)	~60
Estimated monthly income (local-based)	KSh 40,000–120,000
Total professional footballers in Kenya	~2,500
Housing eligibility under current system	<35%
Retired players without homes	Estimated 60%+
Units under construction (Affordable Housing)	76,000+ (as of June 2025)