The building code provides for specifications on siting of buildings, building materials and other construction requirements.
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路 The Local Government (Adoptive By-Laws) Building Order, 1968, popularly known as the National Building Code, was promulgated in the year 1968 vide Legal Notice No. 15 of 1968 following the enactment of the Local Government Act (now repealed) and provides the minimum building standards required of developers to ensure safety and appropriateness of buildings.
路 The Code also gives specifications for inter alia siting buildings, foundations, building materials to be used and specifications on walls and foundations.
路 This Code was preceded by the first by-laws introduced in 1926 during the colonial administration and which applied to the then Nairobi Town Council. The by-laws were revised in 1948 to become the Nairobi Council Building by-laws that also covered zoning and town planning requirements.
路 The 1968 Building Code was and still is a replica of the then British Building Regulations and was based on the British Standard Codes of Practice as set out under sections 32, 35 and 36 of the Code.
路 The Code was given its enforcement powers by the Local Government Act (now repealed), largely being enforced by local authorities (the precursor to county governments).
路 However, following the repeal of the Local Government Act in 2012 and the enactment of the County Government Act (pursuant to the devolved form of governance introduced by the Constitution of Kenya 2010), there arose a regulatory vacuum (lack of legal clarity) on the enforceability of the Code. There does not appear to be guidelines as to where the Building Code is anchored upon. This notwithstanding, the Code has remained the reference point for building professionals, at least in an informal sense.
路 Given this lack of legal clarity, the need to modernize the Code (given it is over 50 years old), recent changes that have occurred in building technologies and materials, sustainability imperatives among other considerations. The 1968 Code adopted from Britain is obsolete considering new building trends and complex construction technologies.
路 The Code does not provide for or recognize new technologies and trends including energy efficiency, decommissioning of condemned or substandard buildings and environmental concerns.
路 The Code also lacks provisions on building maintenance which has been cited as a cause of building failures.
