Slum Profiles | Pumwani Division EASTLEIGH NORTH

110 | Slum Profiles | Pumwani Division EASTLEIGH NORTH

BAHATI

EASTLEIGH SOUTH

PUMWANI

KAMUKUNJI

Nairobi Inventory | 111 The last eviction threat was by Chief Githinji in 1990 but thereafter the residents petitioned the Nairobi City Council and got allotment letters for plots of 25 by 60 sq. feet each. However, the allocation process left out some residents who have resorted to designated social spaces, paths and the riparian reserves.

The settlement occupies 30 acres of government land registered as Plot No. LR 16667 and extends into the riparian reserve of Nairobi Riv- er.

The population is estimated at about 6000. There are 702 households with an average occupancy of 8 persons per household, with children making 75% of the population.

There are a total of 702 residential structures, with about 3600 rooms measuring 10 square feet in size and mostly constructed using iron sheets. A few mud and stone structures are coming up, especially after the City Council subdivided the land and issued allotment letter to the residents.

112 | Slum Profiles | Pumwani Division Rental rates range from Kshs. 500 to 1200 per room depending on the construction materials used.

• There are only two piped water points in the • Residents rely on Bahati, Jericho and Jeru- settlement owned by the Nairobi Water Com- salem Health Centres for outpatient services pany, and the residents are in negotiation with and private clinics for emergency medical con- the company on terms of supply and manage- cerns. Common ailments include malaria, ty- ment. phoid, TB, HIV/AIDS and related opportunistic infections. • The settlement has one latrine built with the assistance from the Undugu Society. The other sites designated for the toilets have been grabbed for housing construction, hence “fly- Most of the residents either work as casual la- ing toilets” are commonly used and dumped in bourers or engage in small-scale business ac- the river or the riparian reserve. tivities, with incomes ranging from Kshs. 70 to 300 per day. Unemployment is a common • Drainage is poor, worsening towards the river problem, especially amongst the youth. and highly prone to flooding. • Waste disposal is mainly directed to the river as there is no garbage disposal system.

• Electricity supply is limited to one security • The Settlement Committee exists but has floodlight stand but no domestic connections. been to a large extent compromised by the • The settlement is accessible through Mumias local Provincial Administration to pursue con- Roads, but internally lacks access roads as the flicting interests to those of the residents, as planned sites have been grabbed for housing witnessed in plot allocations and the subse- development. quent sale of some to outsiders. • Several schools are within reach of the chil- • Provincial Administration discriminates dren from the settlement, namely Nairobi Riv- against the residents in making decisions that er, Uhuru, Buruburu phase 1, Maurishoni and affect them. Dr. Livingstone - Kimathi Primary schools, all • Community-based groups addressing self- under Nairobi City Council and with opportuni- help concerns include Faulu Youth Group, ties for expansion. Muungano Wa Wanavijiji, Ngumbato Women • SOS children’s Home offer free vocational Group and JICA Group. training for the needy children. • NGOs involved with the settlement community include Pamoja Trust, Undugu Society of Kenya, SOS Children’s Home and JICA. • The settlement has benefited from the NCC security lights project.

Nairobi Inventory | 113 These are sister settlements in East Leigh South Location situated between Biafra Estate, East Leigh 1st Avenue, Kenya Air Force and Nairobi River, and they were established in 1963 by landless squatters that got to settle on this vacant land. The original site of settlements is currently the The settlement is on government land Plot De- road from East Leigh to Shauri Moyo. The first velopment Plan no. 261 (/42/13/2001/02), demolitions came in 1970. At that time the set- measuring 4.2 acres in size. tlements had been built using sticks and plastic and were frequently demolished by City Council There are no eviction threats, as the Ministry of Askaris. Later they built some structures that Lands and the NCC have surrendered the land were a bit more secure. In 1978, some mission- to the residents for housing development. ary put some efforts to help improve housing but a greedy leadership then diverted those resourc- es for self-gain and established another Kinyago in Dandora estate, which is privately owned.

A Catholic priest in 1978 concentrated on as- There are 900 structures in Kinyago and Kanu- sisting children with food and education. Later ku combined. Some of these structures are Undugu Society, a local NGO, came in and as- two-roomed measuring 10 sq. feet each for a sisted in getting water supply through the efforts single household, while others are plots carry- of the then Mayor of Nairobi, Kimani Ngumba. ing more than seven households. The two put up a programme that was aimed at equipping the people with skills for them to A majority of the structure owners are resident be able to fend for themselves, meanwhile they in the settlements. continued providing food and other domestic The ownership pattern varies and some people needs. have more than a single structure, with the Through the assistance of Pamoja Trust and the highest ownership being of 5 plots. area Member of Parliament, the residents of Most of the structures have been made using these settlements have been able to develop a mud, wattle and iron sheets and have some working relation with the Ministry of Lands and finishing done on the outside using cement. the City Council that has seen them take great The highest number, however, do not have their steps towards gaining security of tenure. structures cemented on the floor. There are a few structures, however, that are built using stone blocks. Others still are made of iron sheets. There is an estimated population of 12 000 and 8 000 people living in Kinyago and Kanuku respectively.

114 | Slum Profiles | Pumwani Division There are more than 11 000 tenants in Kinyago • St John’s Vocational Training Centre offers and another 7 000 in Kanuku. various courses at a fee of about Kshs. 10,000 for a two-year programme. Rental rates range between Kshs. 400 and 500. • Two halls serve as community resource centres, and one designated playfield is not yet developed. • External access road is through the East Leigh 1st Avenue, but internal access is limited to footpaths. • There are five blocks of latrines, with each having 12 doors. 2 of these latrine blocks are • Residents access healthcare services from connected to the city councils sewer line, while Majengo, Bahati, East Leigh and Pumwani the other two are not and are usually emptied Hospitals for common ailments - malaria, ty- once they are filled up. phoid, TB, HIV/AIDS and related opportunistic infections. • There are 4 bathrooms serving the villages. A youth organization charges Kshs. 50 per month for the use of toilets and bathrooms per household. A sizable population in the two settlements is permanently employed. There are others all the • The garbage disposal is by dumping paper same who are in casual work and others who bags in the Nairobi River. are homemakers and/or unemployed. Almost • There are a few unevenly distributed water half of the adult population in these settle- dikes in the village that come in handy dur- ments is involved in small-scale business. ing rainy seasons. However most of the settle- The settlements are characterized by poultry- ment is not well drained and water drains itself keeping which is for both domestic and com- through the settlements. On occasions where mercial purposes. the rains are heavy, water drains into some of Income levels, however, remain low ranging the houses, causing a lot of discomfort. from Kshs. 100 to 300 for casual labourers • Tap water has been served to this settlement and those in self-employment. at five different points and a fee of Kshs. 2 is charged for a 20-litre can.

• Electricity supply is connected and residents pay directly to KPLC. The residents have a Settlement Committee • Children attend schools in the neighborhood, through which they channel their concerns and mainly: Maurrison, New Pumwani, Zawadi, over 15 self-help groups for development re- Heshima, Our Lady of Mercy, Uhuru -Bahati, source mobilization. Muslim primary schools among others are They are currently constructing a drainage under the NCC’s management. Despite free system and toilets with the assistance of St. primary education, the school drop-out rate John’s Centre. is still high, with residents’ estimate of 200 pupils dropping out of school every year

Nairobi Inventory | 115 The settlement covers an area of 2.5 acres but there is no clear information as to what it was initially intended for. It was vacant at the time of relocation and no claim has been made on it since. It is registered as Plot no. L. R. 36. The group subdivided the parcel amongst members only.

No threats of eviction have arisen and residents regard the parcel as theirs, only seeking assistance towards upgrading

Estimated population in the settlement is slightly above 600, 65% of whom are children belonging to about 60 households.

The settlement has 52 residential structures with a total of 74 rooms measuring 10 sq. feet each. The dominant housing construction materials are timber and iron sheets, with residents citing financial constraints as the main reason for not having standard housing. Occupation is mainly by structure owners.

116 | Slum Profiles | Pumwani Division • Majengo Clinic in Pumwani provides outpatient healthcare services for common ailments like malaria, typhoid, TB and HIV/AIDS-related opportunistic infections. • Residents buy water from a group-managed piped water point at 2/- per 20-litre container. • There are 4 toilets constructed by the group Most of the residents are self-employed in for free use by the residents, served by a sewer small-scale business activities and casual la- line maintained by the NCC. bour and draw incomes ranging from Kshs. 100 – 400 a day. Unemployment amongst the • A drainage system is lacking and the area is youth remains a concern to the residents. prone to flooding whenever it rains. • Youth group provides solid waste disposal services at a fee.

• Electricity supply available payable directly to The residents are organized under a settle- KPLC. ment committee through which their security and development concerns are addressed. • Accessibility is mainly by footpaths off the East Leigh 1st Avenue. Development resource mobilization is mainly undertaken through participation in savings • Pumwani Primary School is mainly relied on and Merry-go-round activities of the 16 self- by children from this settlement, with private help groups formed by the residents, which nursery schools offering pre-primary educa- are ready to work with Muungano Wa Wanavijiji tional services. and Pamoja Trust. • Vocational training, especially for the youth, is offered by St John’s Centre at a fee of Kshs. 10,000 for a two-year training program.

Nairobi Inventory | 117 This settlement is divided into 4 smaller settle- The refusal of allocation letters was because ments of Sofia, Mashimoni, Katanga and Digo. these documents have an expiry period and It has been partially upgraded, especially the there is the need for money for the process- Digo section, and was started in 1921 by the ing of these documents. However, most of the colonial government serving as a camp for do- landlords are incapacitated because the rents mestic workers of the colonial settlers. The are too low or tenants have refused paying, cit- occupation then was that of a single occu- ing their long stay in these houses as a war- pant per plot that today has a population of ranty for ownership. There is a claim that the 15 households. There are unconfirmed claims residents have a working arrangement with the that the political leadership of this nation was National Housing Corporation to undertake the housed here at one time or another, e.g. the upgrading process and construct other high- late Tom Mboya. The very first offices of the rise buildings as it did in 1987, and have all late President Kenyatta during the struggle for who live in this settlement benefit. independence are said to have been located in No incidences of eviction have ever been re- this settlement. This is manifested today by the ported, although the rich owners of the main Kikuyu Mau Mau association in this estate. plots frequently harass those owning the exten- On attainment of independence, the owner- sions. ship of these structures moved to the occu- There have also been very few cases of fire out- pants and some to the City Council. Those that breaks. belonged to the City Council were later sold to the public at a price of Ksh.300per plot in 1966. However, there are still a few structures that are owned by the City Council, especially around Sofia. Those who could not afford to buy the plots were pushed into constructing extensions on the open lands that were available to them at The land here is private and was allocated the same place. They view themselves as own- to different individuals shortly after indepen- ers because they have either lived here for too dence. The majority of the owners, however, long or do not have any other place to call home do not posses any legal document to the claim or own the extensions and see their structures that they own the said parcels of land. being equal to the other plots. This position Total land size is put at 25 acres. has posed a problem in the issuance of titles and other documentation for land ownership, even though the survey process had already been completed in 1995-1997. Allocation letters for these lands were issued but only a por- tion accepted these documents.

118 | Slum Profiles | Pumwani Division • The tenancy of the old houses is mainly by people who started living in this settlement in the 1960’s to 1970’s. Population estimates are put at above 25 000 • There are cases of high goodwill of up to people. There are 250 main plots, each having Ksh.10 000 being asked for tenancy. an average of 15 rooms with an average oc- • Water is served into this estate through the cupancy of 6 people per room, and 120 exten- City Council, who do not charge for the service, sions with 8 rooms each with an average of 4 and through a local project, Azimio Water proj- people per room. ect who charge 1/= for a 20-litre can. • There are a number of schools that serve this settlement, including St Brigitte’s, Starehe, BP, Muslim, Dr Aggrey and others. • There are several hospitals here and they in- • 95% of the main plots in the area that has not clude private, religious and public. There are been upgraded are mud houses. 45% of these several community health workers also in this have cemented floors while the other 65% ei- community. ther have not had cemented floors or the cement on the floors has since chipped out. • Access is by the use of paths and roads. This has been possible because most of the estate • 55% of these structures are serviced with is well planned except where there are exten- electricity. 15% of the extensions are serviced sions that interfere with the original plan. with electricity. • There are a total of 14 toilet structures in the • Rents in these structures vary with the condi- settlement. Each of these structures has 12 tion of the room. Rooms costing Ksh. 2 500 a latrines and 4 shower bathrooms. The latrines month are serviced with electricity and have a are connected to the main sewer and are con- cemented floor. These constitute the 5% that stantly served with water because these places has been built using stone. Those costing Ksh. act as points for the Muslim community to pre- 300 have un-cemented floors and without elec- pare for their prayers. tricity connection. • There are drainage dikes in the settlement • Old houses that have not witnessed any that serve well for drainage of both domestic changes since they were constructed go for be- and rainwater. They also have routine commu- tween Ksh. 700 and 300. nity clean-ups in the settlement. • Extensions, on the other hand, go for between Ksh.1, 500 and 1000 for stone /iron sheets rooms, a good percentage of which are ce- An average of one person per household is mented. employed. The other population of adults is involved in small-scale businesses and/or informal employment in the nearby Gikomba market.

Nairobi Inventory | 119 Residents report having been brought to settle here by Councilor Kiragu Waichohi and the area chief in 2000, and came from Harare A and B. Unconfirmed sources indicate that the land belonged to Nyakinyua Womens Group. Evic- tion threats have however been received from one Amina in 2003 and other developers, but without proof of ownership.

The settlement covers a land area estimated to be 10 acres. The residents suspect it could be privately owned but lack evidence to confirm the ownership status while details of the plot no. is claimed to be with the settlement committee chairman.

The resident population is estimated at 9 000 with 5 000 children and 4 000 adults.

There are about 340 structures, each with at least two 10 by 10 sq. feet rooms built with timber, iron sheets and cemented floors for which tenants pay Kshs. 1,500 per month per room.The structure owners live within the settlement.

120 | Slum Profiles | Pumwani Division • Receive piped water supply from two water points free • Residents pay Kshs. 50 per month for use of publicly owned 6 doors toilet facility. • Drainage is poor and prone to flooding whenever it rains • No organized waste disposal system and solid wastes are strewn anyhow or burnt • No electricity • Road access is by Mfududu Street • Children attend Maurison, Zawadi, Bahati, Uhuru, Kimathi and Dr Livingstone government primary schools in the neighbourhood with The majority of the residents are self employed about 50 pupils per class. School drop-out rate in the informal sector activities with incomes in primary is minimal. Residents propose that ranging from Kshs. 70 to 300 per day, but un- opportunities for expansion of these facilities employment amongst the youth is a common be looked into as getting admission into these feature. schools is difficult as they face congestion in classrooms. • St John’s Training Centre offers vocational training opportunities for the youth at a fee of Community participation in governance is min- Kshs. 10,000 for a two-year course. imal and relations with Provincial Administra- • Healthcare services are provided by Bahati, tion poor. Jericho and Majengo Health Centres under the No development initiatives supported by CBOs, NCC management for common ailments like NGOs, or Local Government Authority exists. malaria, typhoid, TB, HIV/AIDS and related opportunistic infections.

Nairobi Inventory | 121 The village started in 1967 as President Ke- nyatta directed a District Officer to allocate the Akamba Dancers land to settle after they petitioned him. The group split into two in 1982 with New East Leigh Akamba Dancers remain- ing at the settlement and Kariri Kalumi Danc- ers moving to South East Leigh area. They ap- plied for a permanent allotment letter in 1990 and received the same in 1992. They regularly pay land rates to the Nairobi City Council. In November 1987 President Moi offered them another plot in Kayole Section A - Plot no. 51 and they paid the required sums to NCC, but efforts to access the plot have been blocked by City Hall staff to date.

The settled land measures 109 by 210 sq. me- tres, registered as LR 36/1/1032 in the name of New Akamba Dancers Group. It was initially intended for market development. The last eviction threats received were between 1992 and 2000 by unknown people but the group has subsequently acquired Land Title Deed in their names.

Residents estimate their population at about 400 belonging to about 34 households, with more than 60% mainly adults.

122 | Slum Profiles | Pumwani Division

There are a total of 34 structures and 130 rooms, some measuring 10 by 12 feet and a few of 12 by 12 feet in size mainly constructed using timber, iron sheets and cemented floors. A few mud houses also exist.

• Piped water supply is available at 3 water points managed by the group and private individuals and is sold at Kshs. 3 per 20-litre container. • Out-patient health services for common ailments – Malaria, Typhoid, TB, HIV/AIDS and • There is one toilet block with six doors owned related opportunistic infections – are acces- by the group and connected to the sewer line sible to the residents at the East Leigh Health and used freely by the residents. Centre • Drainage is poor and flooding risks are high. • The residents dispose of solid wastes on a nearby road, which eventually gets cleared off The main source of income to the settlement’s by the NCC residents is in self–employment in the informal • No electricity supply. sector business activities, and public enter- tainment, while a few engage in casual labour. • There are no telephone facilities nearby but they can be accessed at the Juja Road Post Of- fice, Gikomba and Garissa Lodge.

• No social spaces, i.e. playground, exist near- There is a settlement committee that address- by. es the residents’ concerns, while 3 self-help/ • Accessibility by road is good, with village welfare groups form the basis for resource mo- paths providing access to the structures. bilization and savings. • Children attend EastLeigh Airport Primary They have never received development support School despite congestion in classrooms. Op- from an NGO or government agency. portunities however exist for the expansion of learning facilities in the school. • Privately owned vocational training institu- tions, i.e. KICTI, are expensive and beyond the reach of most youths that drop out of school.

Nairobi Inventory | 123 Kiambiu started in 1959 as a farming area. Farmers constructed make-shift houses using papers for short term housing as they went on with their farming, because their homes were The very first demolitions took place between fa r. 1971 and 1978. The city council would demol- ish the paper houses, but residents could erect Population growth at the initial stages was others the very day to settle for the night. The mainly by inmigration as residents invited oth- second demolition took place in 1990 and only ers to settle to boost security. six people were left behind - the rest went to The settlement faced a typhoid and cholera settle elsewhere but were able to rebuild in epidemic in 1989 that left four residents dead 1991. and a couple of others hospitalized as they used contaminated river water for domestic purposes. The epidemic prompted construction of latrines and availing piped water for domestic use. The total population of Kiambiu is estimated to be1600-1700 people. There are a total of In 2001 rent disputes flared into violent con- 240 households with an average occupancy of flicts in many of the informal settlements in 7 people in each. Nairobi, and did not spare Kiambiu settlement. Several people died/were hurt and prop- erty destroyed during the clashes. However, residents believe that the issue was not about land but politics. Road reserves have been taken over by con- There are a total of 1289 structures in the set- struction/expansion, notwithstanding the con- tlement. More than 90% of these structures struction/ renovation prohibition that the area have mud walls. The others have either iron chief has imposed on the residents. sheet or carton/plastic paper walls. A single structure could comprise up to 15 rooms. Rental rates range from Ksh. 600-800 per month for the un-cemented and Kshs.1000- 1200 per month for the cemented rooms. The structure owners are charged Ksh.7 000 per room by the area agents of the Provincial Ad- ministration for construction. The ownership of the structures is by highly placed individu- The land on which the Kiambiu settlement is als in the government, city council and the pri- located either belongs to the NCC or to the Ke- vate sector. nya Air Force, according to the residents.

124 | Slum Profiles | Pumwani Division There are a total of 1200 structure owners in • Hospital facilities are available from the near- the settlement, with ownership ranging from by estates of Bahati and Jerusalem. There are, one to seven plots. Fewer than 200 structure however, quacks in the settlement that provide owners reside in the settlement. medical services. A structure of 5 rooms sells at the price of Ksh. 120 000.

Fewer than 20% of the households are in permanent employment. The rest of the households heads/providers are in small-scale business within the settlement or in the nearby Gikomba market or are casual industrial/do- • There are latrines in fewer than 40% of the mestic employees. structures, therefore a ratio of 1:33 for latrine usage. There are private latrines among these The settlement is also the home of many street and they charge Ksh. 2 for use. Most of the la- children who go to town in the morning and trines have been constructed on sewage pipes return in the evening. after they have drilled/broken them open. Alcohol and drug abuse have taken over as • Garbage is disposed in a nearby dumping site the main pre-occupation of the unemployed or into the Nairobi River, which passes just out- youth. side the settlement. Four residents keep cows and/or goats in the • There are no drainage systems in the settle- settlement. Goats are kept in big numbers. ment for both domestic and rainwater. Once in There is also a group practising pig-farming in a while one meets a water dike that is shallow. the settlement. The dikes are just cut into the ground and are Farming is practised outside the settlement in usually blocked whenever stepped on, or over- the unsettled area. whelmed by the rains. • Water is provided by private individuals in the settlement and also by Kiambiu Usafi group, a self-help group. A 20-litre can costs Ksh. 2. Kiambiu is one of the well-planned informal • There is no electricity in the entire settlement. settlements in Nairobi. Residents once approached the KPLC for provi- Several organizations have come to this settle- sion and were advised to raise Ksh. 750 000 ment for various projects. Among them are but they have not been able to do so. Maji na Ufanisi who put up the first latrines in • Communication facilities are privately pro- 2000 and St John from Sweden who came in vided. for a water project in 1989, but this was de- railed by some individuals and later everything • There is only one access road in the settle- they had put in place was vandalized. ment that the residents use for transport. There is also an access bridge over the Nairobi River to the Umoja/ Bahati/Jerusalem Estates.

Nairobi Inventory | 125 The land here belongs to the City Council. Its size is estimated to be 0.5 acres.

There have been several attempts to have them move out of this land. They have also contended with fire outbreaks that burnt down the whole settlement in 1992 and 1997. An individual came claiming ownership a day after we had such a fire in 1997 and had the land fenced off. Residents resisted this attempt and managed to reconstruct. This was only possible after several NGOs and individuals came to the settlement’s aid. We have been summonsed and issued with court orders to have us move out of this land on several occasions by the area District Offi- cer. We later sought the protection of the court of law. The orders were dismissed according to the residents, and they are therefore safe in their settlement.

126 | Slum Profiles | Pumwani Division There is an estimated population of 792 people in this settlement. Residents occupy a room per household with an average of 3 or 4 people per household. There are therefore 198 structures and households. There are about 30 absentee structure-owners and 30 tenants. All the others are resident structure owners. 80% of the structures are made of iron sheets while the others are made using either mud or plastic sheets. There is no single structure that has a cemented floor. Rental rates range from Kshs. 200 – 500 a month.

• There is no single toilet in the entire settlement and residents use toilets in the nearby Kanuku There are no full-time employees in the settle- and Kinyago villages, go to the Air force field ment. Residents engage in small-scale business- nearby or use flying toilets. es and casual employment. 3 residents keep more than 5 goats each that are for business • There exist no drainage channels in this settle- purposes. ment and as a result water is poured just any- where and drains itself freely through the village. • There is only one water tap serving the settlement and at times residents buy water from Kanuku at Kshs. 2 for a 20-litre container. • There is no electricity in the entire settlement and there is no direct access by road to the settlement.

Nairobi Inventory | 127