A little-known, once-sleepy village in Kitui county’s remote Kyuso Ward is waking up to a new economic reality.
Kanana, a dusty rural settlement at the southern foot of the limestone-rich Ngaie Hills, is being transformed by the construction of a Sh55 billion clinker plant by the Devki Group, owners of Simba National Cement.
Barely six months after construction began, a bustling trading centre has emerged outside the project site. It now draws traders, boda boda operators, food vendors, and entrepreneurs eager to tap into the thousands of workers converging on the area. Makeshift kiosks line the dusty access road, displaying clothes, workmen’s gear, household goods, and fresh produce.
“Here, traders are making a killing. Our customers are the thousands of workers at the factory construction site,” said vendor Hellen Mutati.
Food kiosks and eateries have also mushroomed, while boda boda operators are enjoying brisk business ferrying workers between the construction site and nearby market centres where most of them live.
Until recently, the area around Kanana was largely undeveloped and sparsely populated, with no major trading centre.
Now, the construction project is changing not only the face of the village but also the value of the land beneath it.
Village elder Mwendwa Kiimbu, 64, said land prices have risen sharply since Simba Cement moved into the area in March.
Although he did not provide details of individual transactions, Kiimbu said a plot that previously sold for about Sh250,000 in Kanana village now goes for between Sh500,000 and Sh600,000.
“Honestly, landowners here are smiling all the way to the bank as the value of their property continues to rise amid growing interest from developers, land speculators and brokers,” Kiimbu said.
The construction boom has also opened opportunities for locals.
Kiimbu said youth were securing jobs at the project, while others were earning from construction-related activities outside the main site.
Some residents, he said, had found work in various construction activities, while others remained on standby to offload building materials delivered by trucks.
“Our village has been turned into a massive construction site. Apart from the work going on at the clinker plant, many landowners are putting up residential houses to rent out to the ever-increasing number of workers,” Kiimbu said.
The growing workforce has created demand for housing, food and basic services, giving residents new ways of making money.
Women, too, are finding a place in the emerging economy as they supply water to construction sites, while others were selling firewood to the growing number of food kiosks and eateries serving workers.
“Locals are faced with massive opportunities to make money,” he said.
The rapid commercial activity has turned Kanana from a quiet rural settlement into an emerging service and trading centre serving the expanding construction workforce.
But the transformation is still in its early stages.
Devki Group chairman Narendra Raval said the Ngaie clinker project was among the largest in the country and will eventually produce enough clinker to meet Kenya’s requirements.
“We started construction six months ago. We currently have 2,600 people working at the site. At the peak in January next year, we will have more than 4,000 people working at the construction site,” Raval said.
He said the company had committed about Sh55 billion to the Ngaie clinker plant with construction expected to be completed by the end of 2027.
Once operational, the plant will employ between 3,000 and 3,200 Kenyans on a permanent basis, with most of the jobs expected to go to local residents.
For Kanana, the impact of the project is already being felt far beyond the factory gates as an area that once had little commercial activity is now seeing land prices skyrocket, houses rise to accommodate workers and new businesses emerge.
Instant analysis
The Sh55 billion clinker project is already reshaping economic life in a once-quiet Kitui village, even before the plant becomes operational. The influx of workers is creating demand for food, transport, housing and other services, giving residents new income opportunities while pushing up land values. The bigger test will be whether the construction boom translates into lasting jobs, businesses and broader economic benefits for local communities.