An evaluation of Kenya Slum Upgrading Programme (KENSUP): A case study of Mavoko Sustainable Neighbourhood Programme in Machakos County, Kenya

Abstract

Nearly all future population growth will be in the cities and towns of the developing world. Which are growing at unprecedented rate: soon the rural population will be less than the urban, while the number of urban dwellers living in poverty is increasing day by day. As a result of this, the demand for more urban land, shelter, infrastructure, social facilities, and employment has exceeded supply as evident in the current state of urban sprawl and proliferation of slums and squatter settlement. In response to this, the government initiated the Kenya Slum Upgrading Programme with one of its components being Sustainable Neighbourhood Programme (SNP). The programme aims at improving the lives of people living and working in the slums and informal settlements in all urban areas of Kenya. The study evaluates the state of the low income housing in Mavoko, determines the potential of the SNP in improving the living conditions of beneficiary population, explores the means used by the programme to achieve its goals; challenges facing its implementation and most important, the lessons learnt in the implementation of the programme. It further provides recommendations and proposes strategies for implementation of the programme. Interviews, focused group discussion, photography and observation were used to collect data which was analyzed using qualitative and quantitative methods. The data was processed to create data code book which was used to create digital project data base file ,first in Microsoft excel spreadsheet which was then exported into SPSS and save as a data file. The data was then subjected to analysis procedure starting with descriptive frequency and percentages provide sample data distribution tendencies. Data was presented in graphs, pie charts and photographs. The study established that majority of the residents in the area were tenants and squatters and hence lacked the motivation to redevelop the existing poor housing structures. Given the slum dwellers' low income, expenditure, savings and assets owned, the study established that the programme had the potential to improve the residents' standard of living. Civic education, strengthening of civil societies, community-government partnership, and formation of housing cooperatives and development of mixed housing arc some of the strategies being used in the SNP. However, the programme is constrained by poor communication systems, poor management of housing cooperatives, fluctuating prices of building materials and inadequate finance. The study recommends development of an iv cflcctive communication system, training and monitoring of housing cooperatives' officials, establishment of price controls to cushion the poor living in the slums and initiation of income generating activities to support the project by the government.

Nearly all future population growth will be in the cities and towns of the developing world. Which are growing at unprecedented rate: soon the rural population will be less than the urban, while the number of urban dwellers living in poverty is increasing day by day. As a result of this, the demand for more urban land, shelter, infrastructure, social facilities, and employment has exceeded supply as evident in the current state of urban sprawl and proliferation of slums and squatter settlement. In response to this, the government initiated the Kenya Slum Upgrading Programme with one of its components being Sustainable Neighbourhood Programme (SNP). The programme aims at improving the lives of people living and working in the slums and informal settlements in all urban areas of Kenya. The study evaluates the state of the low income housing in Mavoko, determines the potential of the SNP in improving the living conditions of beneficiary population, explores the means used by the programme to achieve its goals; challenges facing its implementation and most important, the lessons learnt in the implementation of the programme. It further provides recommendations and proposes strategies for implementation of the programme. Interviews, focused group discussion, photography and observation were used to collect data which was analyzed using qualitative and quantitative methods. The data was processed to create data code book which was used to create digital project data base file ,first in Microsoft excel spreadsheet which was then exported into SPSS and save as a data file. The data was then subjected to analysis procedure starting with descriptive frequency and percentages provide sample data distribution tendencies. Data was presented in graphs, pie charts and photographs. The study established that majority of the residents in the area were tenants and squatters and hence lacked the motivation to redevelop the existing poor housing structures. Given the slum dwellers' low income, expenditure, savings and assets owned, the study established that the programme had the potential to improve the residents' standard of living. Civic education, strengthening of civil societies, community-government partnership, and formation of housing cooperatives and development of mixed housing arc some of the strategies being used in the SNP. However, the programme is constrained by poor communication systems, poor management of housing cooperatives, fluctuating prices of building materials and inadequate finance. The study recommends development of an cflcctive communication system, training and monitoring of housing cooperatives' officials, establishment of price controls to cushion the poor living in the slums and initiation of income generating activities to support the project by the government.