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KIPPRA

An International Centre of Excellence in Public Policy and Research

Restoring Nairobi to a Green City in the Sun

Nairobi was once renowned as the “Green City in the Sun” with a reputation for being a healthy environment to live in. It took tremendous pride in being a city with a blend of natural forests, savanna grasslands, and three rivers running through it, namely: Ngong’ River, Mathare River, and Nairobi River. Furthermore, the city was home to abundance of wildlife in the forest cover and marshy wetlands. However, Nairobi city’s expansion has come at the expense of the natural environment. The loss of forest cover and green spaces coupled with poor environmental conservation has been exacerbated by urban sprawl, and construction of buildings and other city infrastructure. As a result, the city is now experiencing a huge challenge of planning for sustainable urban development that offers appropriate public services while also preserving the natural environment. The government has put in place various interventions to make Nairobi one of the world-class green cities. However, these efforts have not been sufficient in restoring the greening aspect in the city. This is because these initiatives are still minimal as more vegetation and forest cover continue to be replaced with the grey infrastructure. This therefore calls for the government to put more effort in greening the city to successfully restore the green city in the sun.

Forest cover

The size of tree cover loss has tremendously increased from 130 hectares in 2001 to 441 hectares in 2021, accompanied by increased emission of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere from 71,574kt in 2001 to 263,721.6kt in 2021 as shown in Figure 1. This has resulted into degradation of air quality in the city, thus threatening the quality of life for the city residents.

Figure 1: Forest cover loss and carbon dioxide emission in Nairobi city

Data Source: Global Forest Watch (2021)

Among the first initiatives to address the loss of forest cover was the establishment of the Green Belt Movement and the Ngong’ Hill Forest Restoration Project, which aimed at reclaiming Karura and Ngong’ Hills Forest, respectively. In addition, the government introduced “Adopt a Tree initiative” where students are encouraged to adopt and care for a tree during their schooling period, thus enhancing the survival and increase in forest cover.

Environmental conservancy

In the city, improperly treated sewage and uncollected garbage have fueled a vicious cycle of water pollution, air pollution and environmental destruction. In Nairobi’s informal settlements, residents endure problems such as floods, and foul smell from garbage sites. Furthermore, the explosion in number of cars and other vehicles has led to ubiquitous traffic jams and high levels of green gas emissions, leading to air pollution and consequently acid rain. Finally, the discharge of untreated effluents from various drainage channels and pile up of domestic garbage ends up in rivers, thus contributing to water pollution. This has resulted to unfit water to drink.

The rehabilitation of Nairobi arboretum and the Michuki Memorial Conservation Park through massive cleaning up of the illegal dumpsites and planting of both exotic and indigenous trees has spruced up the green spaces in the city. This also involved the clearing of illegal structures, and levelling of riparian zones and construction of a pathway along the river to mark a clear boundary of the riparian land. The greening of the expressway through planting of flowers is also another initiative taken by the government to conserve the environment. In addition, the ongoing renovation of Uhuru Park and Central Park through revamping of green spaces, putting up plant nurseries and flower beds will play a critical role in restoring the green city. To counter the issue of poor maintenance and neglect, the government launched a programme dubbed “kazi mtaani”, whose aim was to engage the youth in environmental management activities. Under the programme, the youth are involved in cleaning the streets, collecting garbage in markets, watering tree nurseries and attending flowers in the city.

Rapidly growing population

A significant key factor behind the enormous environmental destruction in the city is its rapidly growing population. The ongoing rural to urban migration, high birth rate and   inappropriate city planning has outstripped the city’s ability to deliver adequate services such as waste management, clean water, and proper sanitation. Unfortunately, the growing population has persistently degraded the environment, leading to replacement of vegetated areas with massive construction of buildings as shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2: Nairobi’s City population growth and settlement evolution  

 Data Source: World Settlement Footprint Evolution (2015) and Nairobi County Integrated Development Plan (2018-2022)

Current Interventions

The government through the Kenya Slum Upgrading Programme (KENSUP) in collaboration with the UN-Habitat has taken an initiative to upgrade the slums in Nairobi City. One of the objectives is environmental and solid waste management, garbage collection and treatment system and cleaning of Ngong’ River. The government has made strides through the Affordable Housing Programme in building affordable houses for residents. In addition, the World Bank supported the Nairobi Sanitation Project in providing residents with improved water sources and connecting them to the sewerage network. Further, some firms in Nairobi have introduced electric vehicles in the public transport to reduce emission of carbon, which pollutes the environment.

Way Forward

Forest cover: Adoption of a biodegradable tree incubators (cocoon), case of Australia for mass reforestation. The cocoon is designed to provide seedlings with shelter and water and give them a higher chance of survival in degraded ecosystems. Also, there is need to adopt drought-resistant tree seedlings that can survive harsh climatic conditions. The government could consider private public partnerships by investing in sustainable technologies that can be used to plant more trees along the road reserves and open public spaces as a strategy to regreen the city, as observed along the new Nairobi Expressway route. Furthermore, the government should impose fines for developers who cut down trees with no plan of replacing.

Environmental conservancy: The city government could consider developing a regreening movement campaigning platform to create awareness on environmental conservation. In addition, the government could consider enhancing the “kazi mtaani” programme by recruiting more youth to help in the restoration and rehabilitation of neglected spaces through planting trees and vegetation on eroded areas, cutting overgrown vegetation, cleaning the dumpsites, and planting live fences. This reduces the city’s impervious areas, thus bringing more beautiful and serene environment for more outdoor lifestyle. Further, there is need to improve on proper waste disposal through effective recycling of non-biodegradable waste. Not only does this improve the waste usage, but it also reduces the effect of landfills, with high environmental impact and instead create more land for green spaces.

Growing population: With the persistent growth of population in the city leading to high consumption of fossil energy, there is need forintegration of vegetation in the facade’s walls and on the roofs of buildings to help improve the quality of air for residents. The city government could consider purchasing surrounding lands, or development rights to such lands, to set them aside as green belts to stop urban sprawl and encourage the vital regeneration of the greening aspect in the city. Further, the government could consider giving incentives to landlords and manufacturing firms to invest in clean energy such as solar panels to reduce combustion of fossil fuel that releases greenhouse gases. Also, the government could consider enhancing the use of electric vehicles and put up charging stations to reduce on carbon dioxide gas emissions.

Conclusion

Given that environmental destruction has a huge impact on Nairobi residents, the country economy and international reputation, the city needs to restore the greening aspect to ensure inclusive urban sustainable development.

Authors: Josephine Cherotich- Young Professional, Office of the Executive Director

Omar Maamun- Young Professional, Strategy and Planning Department

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