Surveillance cameras plan to cost Sh10b

By LUCIANNE LIMO

 The Government has embarked on a Sh10.9 billion project to install CCTV cameras in Nairobi.

Metropolitan Minister Jamleck Kamau said the cameras would be positioned in 51 locations deemed to be crime spots and at all traffic lights controlled junctions. The surveillance cameras will not only help police nab criminals, but also improve traffic management, including monitoring traffic signals.

“The Government will fund the project to a tune of Sh2.6 billion while the Chinese Government has promised to give Sh8.3 billion,” said the minister. The surveillance cameras, according to Kamau, will be installed by September. He says the Government will bid internationally.

“The tender document will be finalised next week and the same will be advertised internationally in the course of the week. It will take three months to go through the bids,” Kamau said.

The cameras will be installed in Community area, Upper Hill, Industrial Area, Westlands, Eastleigh and the main corridors into the city including Mombasa Road, Jogoo Road, Thika Road, Lang’ata Road, Waiyaki Way and Ngong Road.

Secret location

The police have already identified the second floor in Nairobi Provincial Police Headquarters to house the control room while the back up control room will be at a secret location, said the minister.

Kamau said a special team of officers would be trained on the cameras. The system will also be connected to emergency service operators including fire brigades, ambulances, disaster operations centres and the police.

The minister expressed optimism that with the installation of the CCTV equipment, traffic within the city would ease, saying at the moment, traffic lights are not synchronised hence the traffic mess. “When fully implemented, the system will capture speeding vehicles through number plate tracking,” he warned.

The minister said the system would allow police to view live streaming video from different areas of the city as well as record and store for afterward reviewing. He also urged businessmen to install CCTV cameras in their premises to deter criminals.