President William Ruto has pledged to eliminate all slums in Nairobi within the next 15 years, in an ambitious urban renewal plan aimed at transforming the capital into a modern, dignified city.
Speaking in Nairobi’s pipeline estate, the President said it was unacceptable for a city of Nairobi’s status to continue housing hundreds of thousands of residents in informal settlements.
“That is how we are going to change Nairobi. We can’t say we are a city and yet people live in slums,” Ruto declared, framing the plan as both a moral and economic imperative.The slum clearance pledge is part of a broader infrastructure and services overhaul that the government says will significantly improve living standards and restore Nairobi’s image.
Central to this plan is a major expansion of the city’s road network. President Ruto announced that an additional 80 kilometres of roads will be constructed across Nairobi to ease congestion, improve mobility and support economic activity.
Water supply, a long-standing challenge for the capital, is also set to receive a major boost.
According to the President, the national government has already added 140 million litres of water to Nairobi’s supply, a move he said would help address chronic shortages that have affected households and businesses alike.
Ruto also turned his focus to the city’s cleanliness, describing Nairobi as having been “choked under filth” due to years of poor waste management and weak coordination between government agencies. He announced a joint clean-up initiative between the national government and Nairobi County, backed by dedicated funding.
“I have sat down with the county government, MPs and MCAs, and we have agreed that the national government and the county will give funds to clean the city of Nairobi, beginning April 1,” he said.The clean-up programme is expected to involve enhanced garbage collection, improved waste disposal systems and stricter enforcement against illegal dumping, although detailed implementation plans are yet to be made public.