Collapsed Eastleigh building had no construction approval, NEMA licence

The 18-storey building that collapsed in Eastleigh had not been approved for construction by the Nairobi County government or the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA). 

Further damning revelations point to the late uploading of the project details on the National Construction Authority’s (NCA) online portal.

The project was missing from the portal on Friday but appeared Saturday, raising questions about the timing of its registration and whether this was a knee-jerk reaction to the collapse.

A quick search of the NCA’s online portal late Friday night, using the project registration number, returned no registration details for the building that collapsed in Eastleigh, Nairobi.

However, on Saturday, details of the project and its developer were posted on the site.

The records identify the project as a proposed development on 9th Street, Eastleigh. The developer is listed as 9th Street Plaza Limited, the main contractor as Stromax Holdings E.A. Limited, the architect as Emmanuel Mwangi Maina, and the Engineer as Mugu Joseph Muturi.

In a statement, NCA Acting Executive Director and Registrar of Contractors Susan Rutto indicated that the building was registered with the authority on July 30, 2025, as a proposed development on 9th Street, Eastleigh.

“The building was registered with NCA on 30th July 2025 as a proposed development on land referenced as 36/II/40, 9th Street, Eastleigh. Project registration number 53128815710410," NCA stated.

The late uploading of the project details has raised questions about the authority’s registration procedures and whether the project had been fully registered earlier, or whether the online records were updated following the incident.

Engineer Raymond Karani, who is listed among the authority’s senior management and is responsible for registration, is also under scrutiny over the department’s handling of project records and the delay in making the details available on the NCA portal.

The Nairobi County government has also revealed that it rejected architectural plans submitted in November 2024 by architect Emmanuel Mwangi Maina.

However, construction reportedly began in June 2025 and continued into 2026. Although the NCA says the building was registered on July 30, 2025, the project details were not available on its online portal until today.

“We are looking for owners and developers. This building has been going up without building approvals. There was a change-of-use application that was granted, but the building application was not granted," said Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja.

According to Governor Sakaja, the county had made efforts to intervene and stop the construction, but enforcement action was hampered by the lack of prosecutorial powers.

“For instance, the South C building, the developer had been taken to court and somebody was charged only Ksh.15,000. While someone is putting up a building worth Ksh.500 million," said Sakaja.

Meanwhile, NEMA had reportedly not granted environmental approval for construction of the building.

In a letter dated January 6, 2026, NEMA wrote to 9th Street Plaza Limited, demanding clear and legible architectural drawings with all dimensions indicated.

NEMA Director General Mamo B Mamo said the company failed to submit, rendering the project non-compliant without an environmental impact assessment certificate

The project proponent submitted poorly drawn architectural drawings, which were not clear; they were advised to resubmit within 60 days but they failed to reapply; therefore, the project is non-compliant and does not have an EIA license.

This places the developer, 9th Street Plaza Limited; the main contractor, Stromax Holdings E.A. Limited; the architect, Emmanuel Mwangi Maina; and the engineer, Mugu Joseph Muturi, under scrutiny as questions mount over how construction proceeded without the required approvals