UN agency seeks to make city, slums more habitable

UN-Habitat boss Maimunah Sharif spoke to the Star on her experiences in Nairobi, city planning, devolution and gender parity 

Maimunah Sharif is an avid cyclist, and when she landed in Kenya in January last year, she looked forward to riding to work.

That was, however, not possible since Nairobi lacks cycling infrastructure.

“I sometimes got around on a bicycle as Mayor of Penang Island, Malaysia. Mobility is about getting people around, not cars,” she says.

Sharif, who began her career as a Town Planner at the Municipal Council of Penang, took over at the UN-Habitat in January last year, succeeding Joan Clos of Spain.

Nairobi ranks among the most poorly planned cities in Africa, with hectic traffic jams being the order of the day. This was the verdict by the World Bank report 'Africa Cities: Opening Doors to the World'.

The report noted the city is designed to cater for residents with cars, while 41 per cent of the population move around on foot and 28 per cent use public service vehicles. This is one of the many challenges facing Nairobi today.

PLANNING NAIROBI

So, as a career planner, what does Sharif think of the capital, and what can be done differently?

“When I arrived here, my first impression as a former mayor was that Kenya is experiencing vibrant economic growth, especially in Nairobi. There is a lot of construction coming up and I think every city experiences this type of scenario,” she says.

She adds that the development of cities starts from agriculture, then towards manufacturing, to retail and then to knowledge.

“This is the normal flow of economic growth in the cities going up to the development status with clean industries and so on. There is a lot of infrastructure development, such as roads, because of the importance of mobility. And this is not just the construction of roads. It is also looking into public transport and the role of the sea and air transport,” she says.

"I have had the opportunity to go to the ground, the slum areas, Mathare and Kibera. Our mandate is to look into human settlement and cities. We have the expertise and our footprint is here in Nairobi."

She discussed with President Uhuru Kenyatta about management of slums, transport and city planning.

Nairobi already has the Integrated Urban Development plan 2015-30. The government also has the Big Four agenda, which also comprises affordable housing.

UN-Habitat formed a task force to work with the Kenyan government, in particular with the Ministry of Transport, Infrastructure and Housing, on the housing pillar and design, in terms of guidelines and advice. "We have also developed the Habitat Country Programme document for Kenya (2018-21),” Sharif says.

The document gives the government strategy advice on priority areas and is holistically in line with the Big Four agenda. It was signed by Sharif and Transport CS James Macharia in July 2018 to mitigate, reduce challenges and guide planning and development in Nairobi.

The Nairobi Integrated Development Master Plan provides a comprehensive framework that has been missing since the expiry of the 1973 Nairobi Metropolitan Growth Strategy in 2000.

The plan, former Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero said, sought to fix problems such as the chronic traffic congestion, poor housing characterised by the expanding slum areas, environmental degradation, insecurity, unemployment and deterioration of the city’s physical and social infrastructure, and make Nairobi a modern and globally competitive hub.

COUNTY PARTNERSHIPS 

Other than the national government and Nairobi city, the UN-Habitat boss has also worked with other counties across the country.

“I have had an opportunity to visit Turkana to see our work with the UNHCR and discuss with the county government on how urban planning and refugees coincide. I realised some refugees have stayed there for many years. It is a noble initiative by Kenya and the county to integrate the locals and the refugees,” she says.

UN-Habitat offers advice and technical support on how best to plan since “refugees need schools, public places, proper sanitation, shops to buy and sell at their convenience”.

“I met the Turkana governor in Geneva last year in a panel discussing humanitarian issues organised by the UNHCR, in particular the Turkana programme,” she says.

"We focused on how we integrate locals and the refugees, which was recommended to other cities. We are also partnering with 22 other counties, which include Nyandarua, Garissa, Makueni, Kajiado, Kisumu Homa Bay and Meru, on various initiatives."

In Kisumu, UN-Habitat has been working on the Lake Region Front Development Advisory Plan since 2012, which is being implemented by Urban Planning and Design branch.

The idea is to have the people treat the lake as the front of their houses, not the back. “We want some rethinking so the lakefront becomes the central business district and promotes investments along it,” Sharif says.

This could borrow from global experiences such as Malaysia and Cyprus, where water front planning initiatives have transformed the countries into strong economic zones with focus on mixed-use development and recreation.

In Kiambu, UN-Habitat has helped with revenue enhancement.

“Many cities have revenue but have a challenge in collecting it. We help them with technical and advisory support to get sustainable revenue, expansion and management, as well as local economic development,” the executive director says.

"Due to our intervention, revenue doubled. This is money that can be channelled to the development of the county."

Other than slum upgrading, the UN agency also helps with slum prevention, waste management and youth empowerment.

In Kibera, where we visited with Governor Mike Sonko, for example, it is the youth who take the responsibility of keeping the environment clean, Sharif says.

GENDER PARITY

While Kenya struggles with the two-thirds gender rule in appointive and electoral positions, the UN in Nairobi is doing well.

Sharif is the fourth woman to head the United Nations Office in Nairobi, albeit in an acting capacity, after Anna Tibaijuka (2006-09), Sahle Work-Zewde (2011-18) and Hanna Tetteh (July 2018 – December). There are other women in top offices, including incoming Unep executive director Inger Andersen and Joyce Msuya, who is heading the agency in an acting capacity.

What does Sharif think of this scenario?

“Half the world population is generally women. If we don’t use or optimise women services, we lose 50 per cent of the chances in countries and cities,” she says.

"Gender parity is the top priority of the UN secretary general. As a consequence, all the regional commissions have women and at my under-secretary general level, we have achieved 50-50 parity. Gender mainstreaming and parity is, however, a challenge even in other countries."

In Malaysia, a policy to have at least 30 per cent women at the local government and the national government is being developed.

Sharif, however, says women have to step forward and take up available opportunities. She thinks while Kenya has committed itself to ensuring gender parity, the challenge is creating an enabling environment for women to take up these opportunities.

“It is not only in politics but also even in employment. For women to work or be active in politics, it in not only having policies at the national level but also in human settlement," she says.

"If you have provision of facilities, for example, schools and public transport, which enable women to take part in mainstream employment or politics, it creates an enabling environment."

She adds that gender is not only about one sector but also cross-cutting, and it ought to be institutionalised.