Let's make Nairobi Africa's cultural, intellectual Mecca

Muslims perform the Eid al-Adha morning prayer around the Kaaba, Islam's holiest shrine, at the Grand Mosque in Saudi Arabia's holy city of Mecca, on the first day of the holiday marking the end of the hajj pilgrimage, on June 16, 2024. [AFP]

Officialdom in Kenya has been celebrating planned relocation of three United Nation (UN) organisations – UNICEF, UNFPA, and UN Women – to Nairobi by 2026. This will have Nairobi join New York, Geneva and Vienna as the only cities hosting multiple UN agencies.

However, few people have paused to consider whether Nairobi will truly aspire to be a world class city that attracts talent from all over the world – like Geneva, New York, and Vienna do – and not just overpaid migrant workers from high-income countries (aka expats).