Contractor behind Ngong Forest hotel revealed, 11 cottages to be constructed
controversial construction of a luxury camping facility in Ngong Road Forest have emerged after the Kenya Forest Service (KFS) unveiled the contractor behind the mega project.
Shocking details around the controversial construction of a luxury camping facility in Ngong Road Forest have emerged after the Kenya Forest Service (KFS) unveiled the contractor behind the mega project.
During a public engagement forum at the Ngong Road Sanctuary on Tuesday, KFS intimated that Konyon Company Ltd won the tender to construct 11 cottages within the premise.
The National Environment Management Authority (NEMA however shows that it did not issue any license for the project and that the initial Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) was conducted by a private consultant hired by Konyon Company.
NEMA noted that the license was not issued because no public participation has been conducted, questioning why the contractor proceeded without approval.
More shocking details emerged when NEMA noted that 20 cottages were to be constructed contrary to the 11 reported by KFS.
The cottages would include 20 luxury tented units designed with canvas and stone, a medium tent reception, recreational and dining areas, a hexadome restaurant, a breakfast tent, a yoga deck, an open-field restaurant, an alfresco dining area and a meeting room.
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Other features include wellness and activity spaces, including a wellness center with a sauna, steam room, and massage facilities, a concrete kitchen (150m²) with adjacent storage, a linen/laundry room, staff accommodation, a security cabin and an electric room.
However, the consultant says he advised the contractor to scale down the project from 20 cottages to 10 to minimize the impact on the forest.
Of more concern, the contractor has failed to explain why the NEMA report indicated that the eco-lodge was to be constructed using only degradable materials, yet concrete buildings have already been erected.
KFS has also trained its guns on the Green Belt Movement (GBM), noting it submitted another application in 2020 through a company called Greenkids Museum Kenya Limited, which sought to set up a children’s museum within the forest.
The applicant reportedly failed to pay the required application fees hence could not secure a license.
KFS had earlier intimated that the denied applicant is a member of the Ngong Road Forest Association, a team that co-manages the forest in collaboration with the Service.
It added that the proposed museum project was to occupy eight (8) acres on the same site.
KFS has suspended the construction of the camping facility pending further consultations. This was after the Green Belt Movement blew the whistle on the illegal activity in the sanctuary.
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