Duruma Road: Where Nairobians never go to sleep

Duruma Road in downtown Nairobi has never goes to sleep.

The street is alive, even as the rest of the city shuts down in the evening. Both legal and illegal businesses thrive here for 24 hours daily.

The road is approximately 200 metre long and has tens of businesses, include commercial sex work — both women and men who pop out from dark lanes and alleys as early as 6pm.

James Kioko, a boda boda operator who has been here for slightly over three years, told The Nairobian that, “This is one of the safest places in town and recently well-lit compared to others, thus we operate on a 24-hour basis.”

Interestingly, unlike other streets identified with some businesses, Duruma Road has all kinds of businesses, including barbershops, uniform shops, tens of brothels and clubs, temporary eateries, matatu booking offices, miraa trading, and even alleged peddling of hardcore drugs.

Martin Kibet, a security guard in a booking office belonging to a Mombasa-based bus company, believes that the presence of cheap hookers attracts hundreds of people to the street.

“With time, I’ve learnt that hookers protect their operation zones because once a negative issue is reported, they’ll lose their business,” he said.

He adds that, “This street does not sleep because all booking offices for buses to Mombasa, Kampala and Tanzania are located here, and people who travel at night must get something to grab, thus the temporary eateries dealing with various foods.

Others enjoy quickies in cheap rooms going for between Sh50 and Sh150 before hopping onto the buses,” he disclosed.

 Asked about security, Kamukunji Police OCS Mohammed Abdi said: “We are doing our best to curb any case of insecurity there.”