As the government continues to work on various upgrading projects in these locations, the lives of Nairobi residents living in informal settlements have improved.
According to government spokesman Col. (Rtd) Cyrus Oguna, the government has initiated various slum upgrading projects in the water, road, health, electricity, and sanitation sectors, among others.
According to Oguna, the government has built 19 new level-two and level-three hospitals under the Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS) in the health sector.
While on an inspection visit of the projects in Mukuru Kwa Reuben, Oguna stated that the government has sunk boreholes in the majority of the informal settlements.
Those that are not supplied by boreholes are served by the 42 NMS water bowsers that deliver water to the slum areas on a daily basis.
According to a government spokeswoman, the government plans to provide safe tap water to all informal settlements in the long run, as outlined in Vision 2030’s social pillar.
“The government has initiated over 20 water supply projects in the informal settlements in Nairobi County and this has empowered the residents by reducing the number of waters borne diseases while also enabling the residents to make savings on money,” said Oguna.
According to NMS Deputy Director in Charge of Water and Sanitation Eng. Stephen Githinji, the government supplies one million liters of water per day in the informal settlements, arguing that this is a stopgap solution until the formal infrastructure reaches the inhabitants.
The projects will be completed by mid-2022, according to Githinji, and the informal settlements will be entirely transformed.
The projects are being carried out in locations such as Mathare, Dandora, Kayole, Soweto, Mwiki, Zimmerman, Githurai, Kawangware, Dagoretti, and Kangemi, among others.
*This article was written by Gerald Gekara for Uzalendo News. Email: uzalendonews24@gmail.com to submit your story.
