In recent articles on flooding and drought, I have challenged government to act systemically, with resilience in mind. The same standard requires recognising progress when public institutions begin connecting the problems they must solve.
On September 8, I attended a roundtable on Nairobi’s rivers as a guest of the Kenya Permanent Mission to UN-Habitat. The Mission, led by Ambassador Nakhumicha Wafula, deserves commendation for organising the event with the Nairobi Rivers Commission, bringing potential partners together.
The presentations offered grounds for encouragement. A government-funded project covers 27.2km from Naivasha Road to Dandora Waterfall. The organisers estimate the initial corridor is 60–70 per cent complete. Riverbank protection, sewer construction, bridges, pedestrian routes, and public amenities are advancing.
What particularly interested me was the relationship between these interventions. River pollution and flooding involve sanitation, waste collection, land use, settlement patterns, and the condition of upstream catchments. Addressing them requires institutions to work across their administrative boundaries.
The Commission’s coordinating role is therefore significant. It creates an opportunity to align responsibilities that would otherwise remain dispersed among ministries, agencies, utilities, and county governments. Its value will depend on how consistently that coordination translates into implementation.
Three examples illustrate the promise. First, several sections of trunk sewers on both riverbanks are reported complete, with connecting lines still being designed. These investments address the infrastructure needed to reduce wastewater entering the river. Their lasting benefit will depend on functioning connections, treatment capacity, and maintenance.
Second, the programme includes protection of Ondiri Swamp, an upstream source of the Nairobi River. This recognises that the health of an urban river begins beyond the stretches most city residents see. Catchment protection must accompany work downstream.
Third, photographs of Kamukunji Park show a football pitch and amphitheatre beside the river corridor. Such amenities make the purpose of regeneration tangible: neighbourhoods where people can gather, exercise, and enjoy public space. Environmental renewal should improve everyday life.
These developments deserve recognition. They also explain why the Mission’s convening effort matters. International partnerships can bring technical knowledge, investment, and experience to support nationally led work, including the further interventions needed along the Mathare and Ngong rivers.
Yet the programme’s own documentary acknowledges that the journey remains unfinished. Construction progress does not establish how much water quality has improved or flood losses have declined. Those outcomes need measurement, and affected communities must help shape decisions about their homes and livelihoods.
Ahead of the coming rainy season, preparedness must include completing priority works, keeping waterways clear, and ensuring that institutions and communities understand their responsibilities. Sustained maintenance will matter long after construction teams leave.
Having called for government to move beyond recurrent crisis management, I welcome evidence of a more connected approach. The task now is to complete the work, demonstrate its benefits, and sustain the cooperation that makes it possible across the wider river basin.
Nairobi’s rivers offer an opportunity to rebuild public confidence through visible improvements that endure. Citizens should support such progress while continuing to ask how well it serves people. Recognising worthwhile public action strengthens the demand for accountable institutions. It gives us something concrete to learn from, improve, and carry forward.
-The writer is a consultant in policy and governance. joshua@joshuawathanga.com
