Nairobi County has announced several major changes in the central business districts after visiting Rajkot, India.
Chief Environment Officer Geoffrey Mosiria stated that the county will ban all hawkers from the CBD and install more CCTV in the streets.
Speaking after the trip, Mosiria said Nairobi will work on stopping unlawful hawking in the CBD by setting up clear policies. Hawkers will only be allowed to work in specific areas and at certain times.
“Back in India, I learnt a lot. Those guys are doing a good job in terms of managing their city. The city is clean. Why? No hawkers are allowed in the CBD; they have cameras everywhere. If they are seen hawking, they are apprehended, and the luggage is taken away for 30 days. If the goods are perishable, then they are taken to homeless homes,” he explained.
Mosiria added that on the trip, he learnt how the city manages heat and keeps clean, and that he was impressed by how clean Rajkot is and plans to implement similar ideas in Nairobi.
He stated that the county will also work on stopping unlawful hawking in the CBD by setting up clear policies. Hawkers will only be allowed to work in specific areas and at certain times.
“There is a lot we have learnt and we are going to implement the same. We are going to work on our policies governing the hawkers.
"The workers should not be within the CBD walkways. Workers shall be in the designated area within a specific time,” he stated.
He also talked about improving garbage management by copying Rajkot's method of sorting waste at the source.
Mosiria also shared plans to clean up the Nairobi River by creating more green spaces and planting trees along the river's banks to reduce heat in the city.
He explained that most of Nairobi’s ground is covered by buildings, which makes the city hotter. To fix this, he said the city needs to plant more trees and rethink its buildings.
As part of reducing noise pollution, he also promised to continue banning clubs near residential areas unless they make their spaces soundproof.
Finally, Mosiria announced that Nairobi will install more CCTV cameras across the city to help catch people who dump garbage unlawfully or vandalise property.
“We will work on installing CCTVs all over so that we can trace those people who do unlawful dumping, those who vandalise the structures,” he said.
