Critical Analysis of the Implementation of the Principl e of Progressive Realisation of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights: A Comparative Study of the progressive realisation of the right to adequate housing in Kenya and South Africa

Abstract

This research addresses the implementation of economic, social and cultural rights in particular the right to adequate housing under the constitution of Kenya 2010. Although economic, social and cultural rights are guaranteed in the constitution, the entre nchment of these rights alone does not guarantee an automatic improvement in the standard of living for the people of Kenya. The state through the relevant governmental agencies has to take steps towards the full realisation of the SERs and in particular housing rights that are the focus of this paper, in a manner that allows the provisions of the Constitution to be enforced resulting in tangible gains for the people and especially the most vulnerable. This paper analyses the implementation of progressiv e realisation of the right to adequate housing in Kenya about five years after the promulgation of the constitution including the challenges faced by the state in attempting to progressively realise this right and to provide housing the Kenyan people. In an attempt to establish the meaning and content of the concept (progressive realization) that underpins the implementation of socio - economic rights under the Constitution of Kenya 2010, the study reviews South Africa`s jurisprudence on progressive realisa tion of housing rights and arrives at various conclusions before making recommendations on how to sustain the progress attained thus far and expand opportunities for realization of the right to housing in Kenya