When it was formed in 2008, critics hastily dismissed the Ministry of Nairobi Metropolitan Development as unnecessary political baggage for the taxpayer and even predicted that it would be a flop.
But the first Minister to hold the docket, Mr Mutula Kilonzo, now Justice Minister, shrugs off such insinuations: “We want to transform Nairobi into a major wealth creation hub that will change the lifestyle of its residents”.
Pointing out that his vision for the city was practical, structured and grounded in law, Mutula gave clear signs that he had honed his plan and was committed to the ideals of a successful Nairobi Metropolitan.
Long before he was redeployed to the Ministry of Justice, Mutula had led the ministry in drafting the legal policy that will guide the implementation to move the Nairobi Metropolitan vision forward.
| The region known as Nairobi Metropolitan covers over 32,000 km², which includes the city core and 14 other surrounding independent local authorities with an estimated population of over 6.3 million people.
And before he was posted to Justice, Mutula had vowed: “I am thinking beyond 2030 and way past the 40 kilometres that will be the initial limits of the metropolitan area, up to 100-kilometre radius.”
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This means that besides an increased geographical area, the population projections of the Metropolitan may rise depending on the dictates of this envisioned expansion.
The Ministry envisages the Nairobi region will be the best managed metropolis in Africa, providing a high quality of life to all its residents, visitors and investors.
The Ministry has been mandated to, among other things, ensure “preparation and enforcement of an integrated spatial growth and development strategy and actualisation of strategic programmes for the provision of social, economic and infrastructural services within the region.”
The vision being developed is based on a model of Nairobi that will set a precedent for the rest of the continent and the world. The proposed model of the Nairobi Metropolitan area is based on three key pillars.
The first is improved governance. The basic problem with African cities is poor governance because it tends to create instability and many problems. And experts warn that no city can flourish in a perpetual state of disorganisation.
Among the critical governance measures to be put in place is the introduction a metropolitan police force that will be equipped with special social skills to engage the public with minimal conflict.
Beefing up security through the installation of closed circuit television (CCTV) at strategic points in the city is among issues being considered. It is projected this would eliminate petty crime in city streets by threequarters.
Another important ingredient the metropolitan police will be trained in is that residents are creators of wealth and not enemies or criminals.
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The second pillar stands on creating wealth to improve the lifestyle of residents so that “no resident of Nairobi will have any reason at all to live in a slum”.
The best way out is creating a 24-hour city that will help in boosting wealth creation. The third key pillar is better planning which will address the rapidly increasing population. Planners at the Ministry estimate Nairobi will have about 12 million people by 2030, hence the need to deal with demands like mass transportation and affordable housing.
Congestion remains one of the key problems facing city planners because of the sharp increase in the number of vehicles in recent years and the lack of parking space, particularly in the Central Business District.
The Ministry plans to expand the road network and construct bypasses to decongest the city. By expanding the reach of the metropolitan area, developers will have the incentive to put up
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affordable housing units in places such as Thika and Machakos.
To woo investors the Ministry plans to push for a single permit regime as a way of removing obstacles to business. In addition, there are plans to create information and communications technology centres in line with the Government’s overall ICT policy.
The metropolitan region is a desirable investment destination due to a number of key strengths which include:
The only city with two National Parks in the world