The Problem and its Context

With globalization, driven largely by the growing knowledge economy, cities are increasingly playing a central role in development. In this scenario, it is those cities or city regions that are able to harness the best human resources, attract the best companies, provide the best living environment, and have the best infrastructure that will strongly contribute to the development of their regions. This will enable them to harness resources at their disposal and attract businesses to develop and thrive while servicing the global economy. They become the arena where the small and medium scale enterprises can be effectively linked into global supply chains.

Nairobi, the capital city of Kenya, hosts the United Nations Office in Nairobi together with other regional and international bodies. It is centrally located on the regional and global transport networks. The Northern Corridor traverses through Nairobi’s metropolitan region and the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) is not more than 5½ hours away from any of the major aviation hubs in Africa. Nairobi is centrally located on the global aviation routes. It is the only city in the world that has a national park within its borders.
Given this strong heritage and endowment, one would expect Nairobi to be one of the most vibrant cities in the world.

At independence, Nairobi was the envy of many cities in the developing world. It was situated within a vibrant economy and had a functioning city government. In fact, many of the housing estates and roads were built during the late sixties and the early seventies. The Nairobi Metropolitan Growth Strategy was formulated in 1973 and was expected to provide direction for the city’s growth upto the year 2000. This strategy was, to a large extent, not implemented.

Nairobi, in spite of its strong geographical advantage, its huge human resource potential, and its relatively lower cost of living compared to cities such as Johannesburg, Dubai, Lagos, Seoul and Singapore remains a declining city. This is reflected in the fact that in Africa, Nairobi is ranked a weak third as one of the potential world cities in Africa.

Its Connectivity Index is 0.55, compared with 0.58 for Cape Town and 1.00 for Johannesburg and 2.42 for London. The Connectivity Index measures cities integration into the global world city formation network. Using country level Human Development Index (HDI), data shows that while this has been improving in the countries having comparable cities since 1975, this has been declining in Kenya. The HDI in Kenya in 1975, 1990 and 2002 was 0.445, 0.540 and 0.488, respectively. For Singapore this was 0.724, 0.821, and 0.902. For Nigeria the numbers were 0.324, 0.430, 0.466.

It is agaist this background that the National Economic and Social Council (NESC) requested KIPPRA to carry out a study and make presentation. The study was to produce a policy brief containing a strategy to raise the status of Nairobi to one of the most attractive cities to live or do business in Africa using the most respected rating systems in place today.
Specifically, study was expected to address Nairobi’s regional and global competitiveness, provide reasons why Nairobi is the way it is, provide short, medium and long term policy measures to elevate Nairobi’s status, recommend appropriate institutional arrangements to implement the proposed strategy, and recommend possible sources of funding and expertise for the strategy.
KIPPRA conducted the study and presented the results to the NESC 2nd full council meeting held on 24-25th Feb 2005. The council debated the policy brief from KIPPPRA and made the following recommedations.

(iii) NESC Council Recommendations

a) Divide the city into five boroughs, each headed by a high-level management board, providing local services.

b) Complete a consultative Nairobi metropolitan growth plan to in order to harmonize current stand alone initiatives, include the city and the satellite towns around it, and prepare the relevant legislation for it.

c) Access immediate funding to resettle hawkers in smaller permanent markets citywide.

d) Improve the policing and enforcement of NCC bylaws.

e) Clean up the city and enforce health and sanitation regulations.

f) Begin a rapid results traffic management system

g) Erect street names, directions, universal address system, and repair the roads and complete city-wide street lighting.

h) Pedestrianize the CBD, reduce vehicular traffic there.

i) Construct multi-storey downtown parking garages on a Public-Private Partnership basis.

j) Privatize garbage collection.

k) Secure all public parks and rehabilitate them.

l) Begin rehabilitation of the Nairobi River Basin.

m) Establish a Nairobi Metropolitan Police.