Global essay (materials needed are provided to answer questions )

Toi Market. Source: Seattle Globalist

The problem.

Kibera suffers from two primary problemssimilar to other cities that have absorbed a great deal of population growth where residents are forced to live in dense, unstable communities of extreme poverty:

1) Basic Needs.

Most Kibera residents live in houses made of wood with a mud floor and tin roof. Due to the poor construction of these homes, it is common that they collapse and/or catch on fire. Many residents die each year due to injuries sustained from their homes. Fire incidents have increased substantially due to the introduction of electricity into Kibera. The electricity is wired through the community illegally by the untrained. Risk of electrical shock is very high and it is common to have several bundles of live wires running through the tin Kibera shacks. Also, Kibera’s electrical grid is extremely unreliable and unsafe. It is estimated that there is one transformer for every 20,000 people. For the rest of the city, there is one transformer for 1,000 people. Blackouts are very common in a community that already has very deficient lighting.

Almost all ofKibera has no access to running water and residents often resort to collecting water from the Nairobi dam. Unfortunately, this water is terribly contaminated from water- borne diseases like cholera[footnoteRef:5]. This severe lack of potable water has created an extreme public health dilemma as residents find difficulty maintaining proper sanitation. It is estimated that one latrine is shared by up to 50 residents and that it is often emptied into the river which feeds into the Nairobi dam. At times, the contents of the latrine are thrown in the street via plastic bags (a phenomenon known as “flying toilets”)[footnoteRef:6]. [5: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-31540911 ] [6: http://www.cnn.com/2012/05/17/world/sanergy-flying-toilet/ ]

Kibera has a dire need for healthcare facilities. The types of facilities in Kibera vary and include health clinics, dispensaries, laboratories and even maternity and nursing homes. Almost all medical providers are humanitarian, non-governmental entities. Unfortunately, many private, healthcare practices are illegal and have gained the reputation of being exploitative[footnoteRef:7]. According to the World Health Organization, Kenya is severely underresourced in terms of healthcare. There are only one doctor and 12 nurses/midwives for every 10,000 in the country[footnoteRef:8]. Obtaining medical care in Kiberais almost impossible because the high demand and almost non-existing medical personnel. [7: http://www.waterfund.go.ke/safisan/Downloads/Sanitation%20and%20Hygiene%20Kibera.pdf] [8: http://apps.who.int/gho/data/node.main.A1444 ]

2) Representation

The original residents of Kibera were ostracized from traditional housing in Nairobi and forced to create their own community located at the periphery of the city. After Kenyan independence in 1963, these settlements were deemed illegal and the residents ofKibera were newly characterized as “illegal squatters.” The government has a “land tenure” policy in place that states that government does not allow development on land that is not legally owned. This puts residents of Kibera at the mercy of landlords who do not provide adequate infrastructure. Housing in Kibera isstill significantly cheaper than rental housing in other parts of the city[footnoteRef:9]. [9: http://www.kwaho.org/loc-d-kibera.html ]

With the lack of government oversight, there are great safety concerns within Kibera. The police are very slow to respond to incidents in Kibera and most calls to police are ignored. This has created a situation that has allowed Nairobi gangs to police Kibera. There are two schools of thought on the internal policing of gangs: 1) that the gangs provide a measure of security and safety and make up for the lack of formal police presence and 2) that the gangs are “warlords” that exploit the residents for their own personal gain[footnoteRef:10]. [10: http://www.nation.co.ke/news/Thin-line-between-the-legal-and-the-criminal/1056-1263458-j94f7hz/index.html ]

Kiberahouses a significant number of refugees. Kenya has an estimated 555,000 refugees with most them residing in urban areas[footnoteRef:11]. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimates that there are 53,074 refugees in Nairobi which absorbs 300-500 arrivals each day, mostly from other parts of East Africa: Somalia, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, and the Great Lakes Region[footnoteRef:12]. The arrival of new refugees into Kibera has created tension with current residents of Kibera who are already suffering from a severe lack of basic services. The Kenyan government has recently passed the “Urban Refugees to Officially Designated Camps Act” that requires refugees and asylum seekers to live in a camp constructed for them[footnoteRef:13]. The effects of whether this policy has alleviated tension in Kibera is yet to be seen. [11: https://www.iied.org/revealing-hidden-refugees-african-cities ] [12: https://www.africa.com/a_long_way_from_home_urban_refugees_in_nairobi/ ] [13: https://www.loc.gov/law/help/refugee-law/kenya.php ]

The Solution?:KENYA SLUM UPGRADING PROGRAMME

The most robust initiative to alleviate the conditions in Kibera is the Kenya Slum Upgrading Programme (KENSUP),[footnoteRef:14] created in 2001 with the aim to “improve the conditions of all slum dwellers in Kenya.”KENSUP has three primary partners: 1) Government of Kenya, Ministry of Housing, 2) UN Habitat and 3) Cities Alliance. [14: https://nairobiplanninginnovations.com/projects/kenya-slum-upgrading-programme-kensup/ ]

Construction on the Soweto East section of Kibera has already begun. The plan divides Soweto East into four zones (A-D). Zone A will house 1,200 families while Zones B-D will house 1,000 families each. Families will be relocated to transitional housing while they await application to new housing. Monthly rent ranges from 700 Kenyan Shillings ($6.93) to 1200 Kenyan Shillings ($11.88)[footnoteRef:15]. [15: http://www.100resilientcities.org/blog/entry/turning-mud-huts-into-apartment-towers-in-nairobis-biggest-slum ]

You are tasked with the responsibility of assessing the pros and cons of the KENSUP plan in meeting the challenges within Kibera. In doing so, please consider the following questions:

1) What are the benefits of the KENSUP plan in meeting the basic needs of the residents of Kibera?

2) To what extent are there concerns from Kibera residents about the KENSUP plan?

3) What issues continue to persist under the KENSUP plan? Will it comprehensively alleviate the conditions in Kibera?

4) What are some proposed solutions that can be used to improve the KENSUP plan?

New Kibera Apartment Buildings (Soweto East) – Source: www.citiscope.org

Here are some resources that can help you respond to this scenario: