Will Nairobi ever regain its lost glory as the ‘green city in the sun’?

Before the railway line reached the place Maasai called Ewaso Nairobi, or a place of cool waters, verdant vegetation was the norm. In fact, it was due to the abundant vegetation and easy accessibility to water that made the herders frequent the swampy grounds. Forests characterised the upper segments of Nairobi such as Langata, Karen and Westlands. Kibra, the Nubian word from which one of Africa’s largest slums is named, means forest or jungle.