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Project

Unlocking the Poverty Penalty and Upscaling the Respect for Rights in Kenya's Informal Settlements
 

Kenya
Project ID
108242
Total Funding
CAD 742,315.00
IDRC Officer
Adrian Di Giovanni
Project Status
Completed
End Date
Duration
24 months

Programs and partnerships

Governance and Justice

Lead institution(s)

Summary

Kenya's population is becoming increasingly urban. In Nairobi, over half the population lives in slums or informal settlements, which are plagued by cramped living conditions and poor access to basic services. Women face additional burdens, particularly in the area of personal security.Read more

Kenya's population is becoming increasingly urban. In Nairobi, over half the population lives in slums or informal settlements, which are plagued by cramped living conditions and poor access to basic services. Women face additional burdens, particularly in the area of personal security. In Nairobi's Mukuru settlement, the "poverty penalty" means that residents pay three to four times more for the available poor services than in wealthier neighbourhoods nearby. Behind the scenes is a complex informal and highly commercialized web of power and governance, where landlords and criminal organizations thrive, often through violence or extortion. In part, these conditions result from both gaps in existing laws and policies and from failures to apply them; however, Kenya's 2010 Constitution has provided some hope in confronting decades of exclusion and lack of access to justice by the poor. This project, implemented by local partner Muungano Wa Wanavijiji Akiba Mashinani Registered Trustees, will build on previous research efforts that have developed legal, financial and planning models that provide a first approach on how to unlock the poverty penalty. The solutions address both technical and governance obstacles to upgrading, improving service delivery and the security of land tenure that ensure basic rights and living conditions for Mukuru residents. Once living conditions are improved, residents can tap into their economic potential and escape the current cycle of exclusion and poverty. In Nairobi, new research and continued engagement with the county and with local residents will feed into the development of further tools to support upgrading programs and policies. Implementation of pilot projects, such as a special housing fund for the Mukuru settlement, will generate new legal, planning, and financial knowledge that can feed into scaling-up efforts across the county. In Kiambu County, research will focus on settlements in Thika, a fast-expanding peri-urban centre. Drawing on experiences from Mukuru, the research will support proactive efforts by the county to address informal settlement challenges, which are only now emerging, and not yet at a scale seen in large centres like Nairobi. The research in this case could then guide policies and practices in other peri-urban centres across the country.

Research outputs

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Report
Language:

English

Summary

This research quantified the poverty penalty, provided evidence on gendered burdens, insecure land tenure, and inadequate provision of basic services in Mukuru settlement. By the end of this project five sectoral plans covering education; health, water sanitation and energy; land, housing and infrastructure were developed by eight consortia. These draft plans are awaiting presentation to the residents for validation and eventual adoption by the County Assembly (2020). The declaration of Mukuru as a Special Planning Area provided an opportunity for both the residents of Mukuru and the City County of Nairobi to develop inclusive plans to address unique development challenges.

Author(s)
wa Wanavijiji, Muungano
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