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Kenya: Dignity Added to Human Settlements
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Business Daily (Nairobi)
OPINION
6 July 2008
Posted to the web 7 July 2008
Ibrahim Mwathane
Worldwide, one of the most truly fulfilling things is to meaningfully touch and improve the lives of others...for neither pay nor recognition. In the long run, it is this silent human thread that goes farthest in improving livelihoods and hope for posterity.
Those who have been to Kibera, Pumwani or any of the informal settlements around our urban areas must have noticed the degrading, dehumanising and indignifying circumstances which many of our fellow citizens have to endure. Squalid sub-standard dwellings; no water, no power and not even pit latrines. No roads, no schools...nothing at all to write home about.
Yet they must eat, drink, wash, dress up, sleep and seek education like you and I. When the call of nature strikes, God help them. Either they resort to "flying toilets" or seek some hidden corner out somewhere to get on with "business".
Yet, elsewhere, life moves on in comfort and plenty. And statistics warn that by 2015, half of our population will be living in urban areas and, worse, more than half of that in such dehumanising informal settlements. This is recipe for serious social imbalance now and in future; little wonder security firms have become a sure investment bet in this country.
That is why one must take note and commend recent initiatives in the upgrading of some of our informal settlements. Some of you may have seen the recent improvements on the road network around Kamukunji grounds and around the jua kali sheds in Shauri Moyo. Street lighting there has been improved too. Once a closed and fairly insecure area, it has been opened up, is easily accessible and secure.
Business returns there have subsequently improved, taking social lives notches higher. Yet, it must have taken some fairly modest sums to do the improvements. But they have touched so many. Whether it was the City Council, the Ministry of Public Works or the National Housing Corporation responsible, this was commendable and should be kept up.
In Soweto village of Kibera, even greater things are happening. The Kenya Slum Upgrading Project (KENSUP) of the Ministry of Housing is busy working to open up roads, provide street lighting, improve drainage, provide social facilities like schools and social halls and even support the formation of cooperatives for mobilisation of resources hence empowerment of the community.
Efforts are already under way to open up an access road between Mbagathi Way and Karanja Road, traversing the hitherto densely settled and closed settlement. What a noble undertaking? And again, the modest sums involved, yet touching so many, are informative. But the work is demanding and humbling. It calls for patience and tolerance so as to obtain the support and involvement of the community who could otherwise easily misunderstand the programme.
A similar initiative has been slowly going on in Ziwa la Ng'ombe Settlement in Mbombolulu, Mombasa. Plans are under way to improve the infrastructure and social facilities like health centres and schools. And it is changing lives and inspiring hope in many.
While touring an improved primary school in the settlement recently, a cheerful young man in class eight told me he hopes to do well and join Mang'u High School in Thika. Speaks volumes about inspiring and giving hope!
We must commend the Ministry of Housing for these mundane efforts. We suggest that better funding be provided to help improve internal capacity, the up-scaling of existing programmes and the rolling out to many more settlements and towns countrywide.
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We also note and commend the support by the UN-Habitat for such initiatives worldwide. We want more support for Kenya so that programmes like these can touch many more.
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