Adopt a Mile – Kabuthe Tributary, Nairobi River
Project Details
Duration
24 months
Location
5 Km stretch of Kabuthe River- Dagoretti Sub Catchment
Partners
UNEP
Beneficiaries
The primary beneficiaries of this project will be the local communities living within the environs of the river. With the restoration of the river’s water quality, the community will enjoy fresher breathing air and a friendlier and cleaner environment thus eliminating waterborne and water related diseases. In totality, the environment will benefit and the pollution loading from Kabuthe River into Nairobi will decrease.
Project Purpose
To rehabilitate a 5km reach of Kabuthe River at the headwaters of Nairobi River through community led restoration and river management.
Project Description
Numerous efforts have been employed to rehabilitate the highly polluted Nairobi River whose tributaries happen to go through most of Nairobi’s informal settlements. We have therefore realized that it is imperative to involve the communities living along the river in the efforts to clean up this otherwise resourceful water body. This is the reasoning behind the ‘adopt a mile’ project.“Adopt a mile” is inspired by models such as; Esther Passari’s ‘Adopt a light’ , Nature Kenya’s Friends of Nairobi Arboretum (FONA) and Friends of City Park (FOCP) initiatives that have successfully mobilized companies, individuals and the public to support rehabilitation.
The corporate sector has been identified as a key resource for the implementation of this concept where the sector will be approached to support restoration of sections of the Nairobi River, through adopting a stretch and supporting its rehabilitation and conservation.
This project therefore seeks to complement the efforts of Nairobi River Basin Project by increasing the participation of communities living along the proposed 5Km stretch of Kabuthe River. This will be done in partnership with UNEP, peer Civil Society Organizations and CBOs and residents of Dagoretti sub-catchment.
Project outputs
- Community participation in rehabilitation /restoration and sustainable management of Kabuthe river project through education and strengthening of the community based organizations enhanced
- An empowered youth to undertake hygiene promotion, environmental awareness creation and community project management skills in through education and capacity development
- Capacity of Youth Groups in Dagoretti area to operate and manage the community’s solid waste strengthened
- Sanitation facilities enhanced by rehabilitation of existing facility and construction of a public Watsan facility comprising latrines, bathrooms and water kiosk in Dagoretti market
- Safe and adequate water storage established in Dagoretti open air market
- The Dagoretti abattoirs wastewater treatment ponds rehabilitated and a wetlands constructed
- Water quality and ecological health of Kabuthe River improved by restoration of a 5km stretch through ‘adopting a mile’
- Water quality data set for Kabuthe River established
- Economic livelihoods of the poor enhanced through community-owned investments in water, sanitation and solid waste management services delivery in Dagoretti sub catchment