Kiambiu Water and Environmental Sanitation (KIWESA 1)
Project Details
Duration
2001-2004
Target Location
Kiambiu village, Eastleigh Location, Nairobi
Beneficiaries
40,000 residents
Partner
CORDAID, SIDA, MAJI NA UFANISI
Project Purpose
To establish pro-poor sustainable access to clean piped water and environmental sanitation interventions that would lead to improved health and economic well being of Kiambiu residents.
Project Description
Kiambiu Water and Environmental Sanitation (KIWESA) project is a partnership between Maji na Ufanisi (MnU) and Kiambiu Usafi Group (KUG), a local community based organization in Kiambiu village. Kiambiu village is one of the 200 slums in Nairobi, situated 4 km east of Nairobi’s city centre, in Eastleigh location. The settlement is located between Nairobi River and the Eastleigh air force base. It has a population of 40,000 within an area size of 0.5km2 (National Census, 1999). 51% of the slums’ residents live in overcrowded conditions, with an average number of persons living in one room (<10ft by 10ft) standing at 3.4 (UN standards,> 2 persons constitutes overcrowding).
The area like many other slums lacks basic infrastructure. In 2001, KIWESA was conceived to address the severe water and environmental sanitation (WES) needs in the village. The project’s aim was also to strengthen and upgrade the capacity of the residents to own, operate and maintain the community’s WES facilities. The group started with 30 members and currently membership stands at 230 persons, 60% of whom are women.
Output
The project has had the following results:
- Tremendous decrease of preventable water borne and sanitation related diseases amongst the larger community especially the children therefore minimizing medical health expenses.
- Increased community integration and social cohesion.
- Partnerships with players in the water and sanitation sector have positioned the CBO and the larger community in the limelight with dignitaries and government ministers visiting the community.
- Voluntary demolition of stream latrines, pit latrines and riverbed latrines by owners has enhanced community participation and appreciation of improved sanitation for the work that is being done by the community based group and Maji na Ufanisi.
- Increased number of registered households enjoying greater access to water and sanitation.
- Impartation of skills through trained “fundis” or technical officers and community resource persons to manage community initiatives.
Lessons Learnt
- Water supply and environmental sanitation improvement for poor urban residents is a perfect entry point for empowerment towards self-initiated development activities in an area (Once people are organized around an essential need such as water, they will organize themselves around other issues as well).
- Poor vulnerable communities if well mobilized and organized have vast and adequate capacity to conceive, initiate, manage and operate major projects.
- Bottom up approach rather than trickle down approach can better work in slum communities due to the dynamics within the communities.
- Business enterprise based projects are more viable and sustainable and they enhance the capacity of communities to manage and operate bigger projects.