Malindi’s tourism fortunes are slowly fading away from what was once a renowned vibrant, beautiful city to a dirty and filthy town marred with poor road maintenance.
Investors who had fallen in love with Malindi are today opting for Watamu, Kilifi and Diani, which are better compared to the old resort.
Historically, Malindi used to attract thousands of tourists each year due to its cleanliness, hospitality of the people and nearness to the national parks, among other attractions, such as the beach.
However, gone are the days when tourists would tour Malindi and feel the comfort deserved for guests who come to enjoy their holidays.
Today, those investors and holidaymakers who have been in the resort town for decades feel it has been abandoned by the authorities.
As the festive season begins, memories of the past brilliant town still exist, but things have changed from the previous years.
GLORY DAYS
In 2001, Malindi was declared the cleanest town in Kenya, during the tenure of the then Mayor Gideon Mung’aro — the current Chief Administrative Secretary for Lands.
The town became a runner-up in 2003 and the following year it was nominated to represent Kenya at the UN-Habitat World Urban Forum in Barcelona, Spain. It received a Gold Award from Total Oil Kenya Eco-Challenge in 2004.
That time, there were a lot of initiatives, including that of the then-famous Malindi Green Town Movement, headed by hotelier Godfrey Karume, which dealt with beautification of the resort city.
However, gone are the days when Malindi used to shine right from the central business district to the tourism resort establishments.
Among the problems annoying investors and even residents is the dumpsite located in Casuarina, near the luxurious tourism establishments.
Malindi dumpsite was established over 40 years ago as an area where all waste materials would be dumped. That time, the population of Malindi was small, and managing it was easy.
With the rise in population, the site has now become a menace, despite neighbouring prominent investors and politicians such as Italian billionaire Flavio Briatore, who established the Billionare Resort and the Lion in the Sun.
Other personalities known to own property not very far from the dumpsite include Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko and football star Macdonald Mariga, who has to endure the stench along the Casuarina Road before reaching his luxurious home.
The site is surrounded by over 20 resorts from a distance and hundreds of private villas owned by local and foreign investors.
The Billionaire Resort is patronised by prominent personalities, including former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, Formular 1 driver Fernando Alonso and British supermodel Naomi Campbell.
Campbell was just at Lion in the Sun recently for a magazine shoot and is expected back for Christmas holidays.
Reports indicate that nowadays, the resorts are unable to set up dinner outside. Flies from the Casuarina dumpsite flock to the food, posing a major health risk and putting off customers.
Further, there are thousands of dumpsite birds that flock the area due to its nearness to the site. These cause havoc to holidaymakers wishing to relax.
The situation is worsened when the waste is burnt and toxic smells fill the area.
Dr Liliana Pierino, an entrepreneur who is in charge of The Holdings of Italian billionaire Flavio Briatore, has offices close to the dumpsite. He wonders why the county government has never thought of improving the standard of the resort town to make it attractive to holidaymakers.
During an interview recently, he said Malindi is in pathetic condition because of the poor roads, electricity and drainage if it rains.
However, he concluded by saying the biggest problem of all is the dumpsite, which is now getting closer to tourism establishments.
“It’s affecting the staying of guests In Malindi and its environs. It’s affecting the health of the people of Malindi, and there is a risk of health hazards,” he said.
Pierino says as investors, they are doing their best to bring in high-end tourists. But of late, it’s becoming difficult for them to go out at night due to poor lighting on the roads and the potholes, as they do not feel safe.
“It’s affecting business because restaurants that are supposed to be visited by the guests can’t get clients. We wonder what is happening,” he said.
The investor, who has been in Malindi for over 25 years, asked why, despite the increased population in Malindi, the dumpsite has not been relocated.
During the tenure of Dan Kazungu as Malindi MP, he acquired land in Kakuyuni and had set up plans to relocate the dumpsite.
However, the idea died following his appointment as Cabinet Secretary in 2016, and subsequently as Kenyan Ambassador to Tanzania.
“The dumpsite is affecting our lives. All houses nearby have a bad smell. When there is fire, resorts or houses with makuti roofs can cause a major disaster,” Pierino said.
In his opinion, Malindi has been abandoned. “The dumpsite is in terrible condition, and it is 500m away from the main road. Something must be done. It’s 10 years since people began to say it should be relocated,” Pierino said.
He said the government should not focus on publicity on television to promote tourism, as clients need to get value of their money.
Holidaymakers nowadays are welcomed by poor roads in the resort town, full of potholes.
The problem is worse at the Malindi Beach Road, which is mostly used by tourists to get a feeling of the old historical background and see old sites, such as the Vasco Dagama pillar, Malindi Museum and the rich Bajun or Swahili culture.
When going to the hotel, the problem is similar along Casuarina Road, leading to the Malindi Marine National Park.
At night, despite the heavy investments made by the government to instal streetlights, some parts remain dark.
In Casuarina, which is home to many tourism establishments, the problem is worse because tourists are welcomed by the bad smell coming from the main dumping site, which is over three decades old.
BATTALION OF FLIES
Journalists visited the dumpsite recently and came face to face with the disaster that not only affects those residing in the locality but even those who call it home.
One is welcomed upon reaching the road to the dumpsite by a ‘battalion of flies’, bad smell and smoke coming from the site.
There are also over 100 people who are busy scavenging at the dumpsite, some looking for food, others collecting boxes, plastic waste or scrap metal.
For one to access it, they must have permission from ‘the dumpsite elder’, who as we come to learn has lived there for over 35 years.
Looking at the surrounding, one can easily see the private villas neighbouring the dumpsite and tourist resorts.
Everyone minds their own business at the dumpsite, but is very cautious of visitors intruding their world.
Investors wonder how Malindi can have a dumpsite right at the heart of the tourism hub, if the authorities are concerned about the people’s welfare.
Sabina Vivaldi, an investor who owns Cozy Point Homes, says where she stays in Casuarina, the effects of the dumpsite are evident due to the bad smell and many birds that are attracted there.
“Kilifi county is establishing a new tarmac road to connect Casuarina and Watamu. This will increase business, but we cannot have the dumpsite where it is,” she said.
She said investors
are trying to engage people to clean the town and fill the potholes because they feel it has been abandoned.
On lighting, she said some areas light for one day and remain off for 10 days.
“This affects security. Guests are afraid of coming out at night. They are concerned about safety, they need assurance,” she said.
Sabina said Malindi is her second home. She likes to invite friends from Italy to visit the country, but the situation is worsening each day.
In Malindi town, locals are blaming the authorities for not maintaining the resort to attract tourists.
Politician Jamal Sheikh said it is a shame to see how the roads along the seafront have been abandoned.
He called on the national government and MP Aisha Jumwa to consider upgrading the road.
“This is a shame to the government. I would urge President Uhuru Kenyatta, the Roads Cabinet secretary and PS to pass through the seafront road and see its current state,” he said.
He told the President to sack the Roads CS, as he has failed to deal with the problem for over five years. Roads are under the Transport ministry, headed by James Macharia.
Jamal said there are over 300 tourist vans in Malindi with local tourists. However, the road leading to most resorts are in bad shape.
He said investors are relocating to Watamu, Kilifi and South Coast because of the poor standard.
Resident Said Aziz said the road along the seafront needs to be renovated as it contributes a lot to the economy of the resort town.
At the dumpsite, Sande Ngome blamed the government for failing to set up structures for maintaining it.
All those staying there say no one from the government bothers about them, despite the fact that they contribute to the maintenance of the dumpsite.
It’s high time the dumpsite is relocated to bring back the town’s lost glory and lure more investors.
QUICK FACTS
Malindi is 120km northeast of Mombasa
The population of Malindi was 207,253 as of the 2009 census, but the number could have doubled by now.
It is the largest urban centre in Kilifi county.
The Malindi dumpsite was established in 1970
Over 10 resorts border the dumpsite and thousands of villas
There are over 20 tourist resorts and more than 4,000 private villas
In 2001, Malindi was declared the cleanest town in Kenya