waste management in nairobi kenya

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Published by City Farmer, Canada's Office of Urban Agriculture

Community-Based Waste Managementfor Environmental Management and

Income Generation in Low-Income Areas:

A Case Study of Nairobi, Kenya

by Kim Peters

in association with Mazingira Institute

Nairobi, Kenya March 1998

Table of Contents

Foreword

Summary

Chapter One: Nairobi's Urban Environment

1.1 Introduction

1.2 Geographical Context of the Project

1.3 Demographic, Social and Economic Context

1.4 Local Government in Nairobi and the Waste Management Situation

Chapter Two: Redressing the Urban Service Imbalance: The Role of the Community Sector in Waste and

Environmental Management

2.1 Introduction

2.2 City-wide Community Efforts

2.3 Local NGOs Promoting Composting

Figure 2.1 Greater Nairobi Area: Locations of Informal Settlements and Composting Groups

2.4 Community-Based Organizations Involved in Composting

Figure 2.2 Kibera - Location of Urban Agriculture PlotsFigure 2.3 Kitui-Pumwani - Location of kinyago Village Urban Agriculture Plots

2.5 Environmental Benefits of Composting

2.6 Limitations of Composting as a Waste Management Strategy

2.7 Composting and Rural-Urban Linkages

Chapter Three: Community Development through Composting

3.1 Introduction

3.2 Amounts and Relative Importance of Income Generated

3.3 Constraints on Income Generation

3.4 Gender and Development Issues in Composting3.5 Improving the Sustainability of Composting Projects

Chapter Four: Conclusions



4.1 Introduction

4.2 Summary of the Environmental, Income and Community Development Impacts of the Composting

Projects

4.3 Appropriate Roles for Actors in the Waste Management Sector

4.4 The Research Agenda on Waste Management in East Africa

Appendix I: Photographic Essay of Community Waste Management in Nairobi

Bibliography

Community-Based Waste Mangement for Environmental

Management and Income Generation in Low-Income Areas:

A Case Study of Nairobi, Kenya

Foreword

Research for this case was originally carried out in Nairobi in 1994 and 1995, and was funded by the Canadian

International Development Agency.

The research was carried out by Kim Peters with the assistance of the Mazingira Institute, the Faculty of

Environmental Studies at York University, Toronto, Canada, the Department of Urban and Regional Planning at

the University of Nairobi, the Undugu Society of Kenya, the Foundation for Sustainable Development in Africa,

and the Uvumbuzi Club of Nairobi.

I would also like to acknowledge the in-kind support provided by the Earth Council in preparing this version of

the case study.

Kim Peters

Toronto, Canada

March 1998

Summary:

This study focuses on the problems and opportunities of community-based waste management in Nairobi, Kenya.

Within several of the city's informal settlements, women's groups have started composting organic wastes asmeans of improving community environmental conditions and generating income through the sale of the compost.

The central purpose of the study is to assess the success of these composting projects in meeting their

environmental and community development goals. A complementary purpose of the study is to add to the limited

amount of research on waste in East Africa.

The participatory research techniques employed in this study revealed that significant environmental improvements

have been achieved through composting, including improved health, urban agriculture opportunities, better

drainage and access within the communities, and the potential to address rural-urban imbalances in resource

flows. The composting projects have, to date, been less successful in their goal of generating income. However,

the research revealed that other aspects of community development are equally, if not more important, than

income generation.

In terms of appropriate roles for NGOs, CBOs and local authorities, the research provides evidence that

communities are more than willing to provide for themselves urban service like waste management when local

authorities are unable to do so. In providing advice, training, and credit to these organizations, NGOs have an

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important role to play. The resources of local authorities are therefore best employed in regulating, coordinating

and advising CBO and NGO efforts in the provision of urban services like waste management.

This research has also added to the limited information on waste management in East Africa, especially with

regard to issues of gender, urban agriculture, and the most appropriate roles for all actors in the waste

management sector.

Chapter One

Nairobi's Urban Environment

1.1 Introduction

One of the most important outputs of the Earth Summit (United Nations Conference on Environment and

Development) in 1992 was Agenda 21:

an action plan for the 1990s and well into the twenty-first century, elaborating strategies and integrated

programme measures to halt and reverse the effects of environmental degradation and to promote

environmentally sound and sustainable development in all countries (UNCED, 1992).

Agenda 21 included an action plan for cities wishing to enhance urban sustainability. These recommendationsincluded institutionalizing a participatory approach and improving the urban environment by promoting social

organization and environmental awareness. The need to promote actively, to strengthen and expand waste re-use

and recycling systems was also recognized in Agenda 21. The consensus on sustainable development which

emerged from the Earth Summit now must be transformed into action by engaging in a period of decentralized

experimentation (Brugmann, 1994: 129).

Sub-Saharan Africa is one region where this experimentation is actively occurring now, especially after the 1980s

economic crisis which resulted in increased hardship for most of the region's poor. The serious problems which

confront African cities as a result of the 1980s' economic crisis have been well documented (Stren and White,

1989). One enduring consequence is the inability of African governments to sustain adequate levels of urban

services. As continuing economic hardship forces a growing number of migrants to urban areas in search ofemployment, an even greater strain is placed on urban pressure points like solid waste management. Both

financially and physically, a city may be unable to provide waste collection, especially to the urban poor

occupying peri-urban or other geographically inaccessible areas. The urban poor are left to contend with waste

disposal on their own. The lack of support given to the urban poor in this area has serious consequences on their

health and on the urban environment. Thus, in cities of the developing world, the management of solid wastes is

now an issue of vital importance to urban sustainability.

As urban environmental problems worsen in developing countries, non-conventional approaches to urban

pressure points like waste management will have to be adopted. The recycling of solid and organic waste is one

approach which has positive ramifications in creating informal employment and offering an environmentally sound

solution to waste management problems. While there is considerable documentation on innovative community-level waste management schemes in Asian and Latin American cities, little research has been done on the

importance of, and potential for, waste re-use in African cities . As a city with critical waste management

problems and a burgeoning informal sector, Nairobi possesses both the need and potential for an innovative

approach to its waste problems.

One alternative waste management technique is the urban poor's re-use of refuse. Waste recycling is often

undertaken as a survival strategy when the urban poor are unable to obtain formal employment, and when non-

waste resources are scarce or unaffordable. Waste re-use also plays a role in improving the urban physical

environment. By reducing the total amount of solid waste headed for the landfill (or left lying to rot in the streets),

recycling and composting are land-saving and pollution-reducing strategies. Waste re-use also plays a valuable

resource conserving role: by recycling materials, further exploitation of scarce natural resources is minimized, thuscontaining the spreading ecological footprint of the city. Despite these environmentally and socially beneficial

aspects of waste recycling, it is not without its negative impacts, which include exploitation by waste buyers and

poor health and living conditions for the urban poor who deal in waste picking (Furedy, 1992).



This study started as an investigation of community efforts at environmental management, income generation, and

community empowerment through waste management in Nairobi, Kenya. Several community groups in Nairobi's

low-income areas were found to be undertaking composting as an income generating and environmental

management strategy. Other types of community waste management also exist in Nairobi: these will also be

discussed briefly.

Waste management is identified as one of Nairobi's key environmental issues and is therefore the focus of this

study. Local residents fondly recall the days when Nairobi was a clean, efficient city - the pride of Africa.

Researchers in Kenya and abroad discuss the externalities of structural adjustment - how the ability of localauthorities to deliver services to urban residents has been hindered by deficit reduction, civil service streamlining,

etc. Local residents and researchers alike show concern for the impact that the lack of adequate waste

management has on low-income urban residents. Both local residents and researchers are also looking for

solutions which not only mitigate the environmental problems of waste, but also enhance community development

efforts by generating income, sharing information and labour, and uniting community members in collective action.

To what extent have solutions along these lines been applied in Nairobi? How are they being carried out? Are

they successful? What are the limitations and the future potential? These questions will be addressed with the

intention of adding to the body of literature on urban problems in East Africa, and of documenting local initiatives

which, because of their small scale and informal nature, are often overlooked in the struggle to achieve global

sustainability.

1.2 Geographical Context of the Project

Today, Nairobi's two main images stand in marked contrast to one another. The first is of a well-planned garden

city in which salubrious suburbs, the preservation of open space, and the presence of wide, landscaped

boulevards dominate the city's physical layout. Equally visible nowadays is what Hake (1977) calls the "self-help

city": it includes make-shift housing, roadside jua kali shops and industries, and small, cultivated plots along

undeveloped or under-utilized urban land. Today, the dividing lines between Nairobi the garden city and Nairobi

the self-help city are less distinct as informal housing and small-scale business activities are attracted to the large

number of open areas in the city's upper income areas. Under-investment in urban infrastructure is also resulting in

the decay of many of Nairobi's modern "amenities". However, the colonial pattern of development still persists inthat the majority of Africans live in high-density and/or informal housing to the east of the CBD while high-income

groups, including Asians, Europeans, and the African nouveau-elite live to the west and northwest of the CBD.

The informal housing settlements of Nairobi are home to over half of the city's population, now estimated to be

about 1.8 million (Lamba, 1994: 168). The density of informal settlement is reflected in the amount of land they

occupy: one third of Nairobi's population lives on only five percent of the city's land (Ibid.). The most common

housing situation for residents of informal settlements is renting, not ownership. Illegal landlords (who may or may

not live in the slums themselves) collect rent from illegal tenants (Lamba, 1994; Lee-Smith, 1990). In some cases,

beds within houses are sublet for a certain number of hours each day (Ibid.) Land allocation decisions are made

through local chiefs and village elders, rather than through recognized municipal authorities. The land on which

informal settlements are constructed is hazardous because of steep slopes, flooding, or proximity to noxiousindustry. Poverty, the insecurity of housing tenure, and the desire to invest in rural homes limit incentives to

improve urban housing conditions. The illegal status and inaccessible location of these settlements make local

authorities reluctant to provide them with urban services.

The lack of well paying formal sector employment opportunities (due to slow economic growth, SAPs and the

accelerated pace of urbanization) has resulted in a growing jua kali (i.e., informal) sector in Nairobi. This sector

has become an important alternative to employment in the formal sector and is estimated to employ

approximately one half of the urban labour force, contributing twenty to thirty percent of total urban income

(Ondiege, 1990:6). For 1981-84, the growth rate of the informal sector (8.1%) was estimated to be twice that of

the modern sector (4.1%) (Ibid.). The sector caters for low-income consumers with the affordable goods and

services the sector provides. Informal activities in Nairobi include street vendors, maize roasters, shoe shiners,

auto-repairers, cart pullers, kiosk owners, street barbers, water vendors, building contractors, charcoal sellers

and furniture makers (Bubba and Lamba, 1991).

Many of Nairobi's poor engage in waste picking as a means of income generation. Scavengers are estimated to



collect 20 tonnes of the approximately 800 to 1000 tonnes generated daily in Nairobi (Syagga, 1992: 34).

The degree of scavenging is so intensive at the main Dandora waste disposal site such that a visit to the site during

the day appears as if the scavengers are people working in a rice field (Mwaura, 1991: 105).

Mwaura's 1991 study of scavengers found that the majority were single men averaging about 27 years of age.

They were usually long-term residents of Nairobi; it is not a job for recent migrants because detailed information

as to where to find the garbage is needed and one must have linkages to the market to enable one to sell (Ibid.,

88-100). The most popular items scavenged include paper, scrap metal, and bottles in that order of preference.

Other materials identified included bones and plastics (Odegi-Awuondo, 1994: 49). Scavengers sell daily

collections to middlemen who in turn sell it to industries.

Organic wastes are not usually scavenged by waste pickers, but are important to street children who often pick

through bins to find their next meal. Some of the larger restaurants and hotels also sell their scraps to farmers to

be used as pig feed (Personal communication, Sarova Hotels). Organic wastes are also important to the urban

agriculture sector as all sorts of livestock, including goats, chickens and the occasional cow, feed on top of waste

heaps.

Urban agriculture exists throughout the city on both private and public land. The growing of crops in urban areas

is an important survival strategy for the urban poor (especially for those without rural land holdings) as it reduces

the amount of income expended on food (Kettel et al., 1995). Freeman (1991) estimated that one-third of urban

households in Nairobi grew crops. A study on urban agriculture by the Mazingira Institute (1987) estimates that

three quarters of urban farmers consumed all that they produced.

The legal status of urban agriculture remains unclear. While harassment of urban farmers by legal authorities

largely has ceased, threats are still made that maize plots along road reserves will be cleared because they limit

driver visibility and conceal criminals. The potential of urban agriculture is limited by these threats along with crop

theft and vandalism. While its importance as a survival strategy for the urban poor is evident, its viability as a

development solution has been challenged: "...if it is as backward and trapped in vicious circles of poverty as rural

agriculture, it is no answer to our search for sustainable development" (Bibangambah, 1992: 306).

1.3 Demographic, Social and Economic Context

In the 1980s, the austerity measures associated with SAPs and a decline in national economic growth had the

effect of worsening urban poverty, but perceived higher incomes in urban areas and the removal of agricultural

subsidies as part of SAPs have also led to an increase in rural-urban migration in the 1980s (whereas the 1970s

had seen a decline in the rate of migration). This rapid urban growth, combined with SAP austerities, causes

strain on existing facilities in urban areas. The under-investment in services has been especially difficult on women

who are responsible for the provision of collective needs.

Traditionally it was men who migrated to urban areas, leaving women and children in rural areas where food and

education were cheaper and labour was needed to care for the family shamba. However, an increasing number ofwomen are migrating to urban areas for a number of reasons: in order to improve their position in the socio-

economic system of stratification which limits their ability to participate fully in the rural opportunity system; in

order to escape traditionally ascribed status, from obedience to male relatives, from lives of hard physical labour,

from customary sanctions against unmarried mothers; and to look for husbands because few men remain in rural

areas (House-Midamba 1991:53-54). While women lose the security of traditional rural life, they clearly gain a

sense of personal freedom, empowerment, and independence from life in the city. Brown (1994: 24) estimates

that over half of the population in Nairobi's informal settlements live in female-headed, single parent households.

In terms of employment opportunities, men have more access to formal sector jobs because they tend to be more

highly educated and do not have the child care responsibilities of women. Even in the informal sector, men have

more opportunities for the same reasons as above, but they also have better access to credit than women.Women's inability to secure capital and acquire access to credit (because they have been systematically excluded

from land ownership which would provide them with collateral) exerts severe and negative repercussions on

Kenyan women's commercial activities.

Three-quarters of all Kenyan women engaged in small-scale urban enterprises are concentrated in the area of



wholesale and retail trade (House-Midamba, 1995: 82). Within this group of women traders, a large majority of

them are vegetable hawkers. This role is derived not only from the role of women as vegetable traders in

traditional Kikuyu society, but also from the flexibility that vegetable hawking allows them: it requires almost no

capital investment; their place of business and hours of operation are variable; and they can care for children at

the same time as working (Ibid.). Other forms of hawking by women include charcoal selling, maize beer-

brewing, kiosk operating, selling cooked food, dressmaking, hairdressing and prostitution (Ibid.: 90).

The cutbacks in urban infrastructure investment and social services as a result of SAPs have a disproportionate

impact on women. They are traditionally responsible for providing items of collective consumption, such as waterand domestic energy, normally provided through infrastructural services (Lee-Smith and Stren, 1991: 30).

Women in urban areas are burdened with providing these services, in addition to child care and income

generating responsibilities. Women's organizations in Kenya play a vital role in the process of economic

development (by providing access to credit, education, etc.) and in lobbying the government for improved

conditions for women (House-Midamba, 1995: 92).

1.4 Local Government in Nairobi and the Waste Management Situation

Responsibility for the provision of most urban services is allocated to the level of local government as a result of

the British colonial heritage of the country. Because the westernized approach to service provision is failing,

alternatives must be explored. In order to identify appropriate alternatives, the reasons for the failure of urbanservice provision must be established.

Administration of urban areas in Kenya is the responsibility of local authorities and the Ministry of Local

Government. In 1991, there were 109 local authorities in Kenya. These are divided into four categories: 20

municipalities (including Nairobi); 22 town councils; 39 county councils; and 28 urban councils (Bubba and

Lamba, 1991: 40). Services provided by municipal governments in large urban areas include: primary education,

health services, road construction and maintenance, water supply, sewerage, housing, solid waste management,

drainage, markets, and social services.

The problems plaguing the management of Nairobi's urban services can be traced to both local and central levels

of government. Staff at both levels suffer from a lack of decision-making authority, a lack of experience, a lack ofaccountability and heavy volumes of work due to under-staffing (Smoke, 1994: 128). There is also a lack of

inter-local government cooperation in projects where a coordination in planning and construction of infrastructure

projects would result in significant cost savings (Ibid., 124). Smoke also identifies several financial problems that

plague local authorities: out-dated land rates, neglect in the collection of taxes, dishonesty of revenue collectors,

inadequate enforcement authority, political pressure on officers to be less aggressive in revenue collection, and

payment delinquency on the part of many government agencies and parastatals. Moreover, user fees for some

urban services may be heavily subsidized to the point that the service is operated at a net loss (Bubba and

Lamba, 1991: 41).

These problems are exacerbated by political difficulties at the city level. Councillors are more concerned with the

private accumulation of wealth than with the efficient management of urban services (Bubba and Lamba, 1991:42). There are also poor relations between the politicians and chief officers. The Nairobi City Council (NCC) has

been at the centre of these controversies. In 1983, the City Council was dismissed because of gross

mismanagement and failure to provide urban services. In its place, a commission was set up to run the city.

Between 1983 and 1991, there were five different chairpersons and three different commissions: each was

dissolved because of its inability to serve City Hall or to provide residents with services (Ibid., 46-47).

These organizational, fiscal and political problems faced by central and local government in Kenya have resulted

in an inability to cope with the staggering rates of population growth and rural to urban migration. There is

excessive strain on existing facilities and under-investment in new ones. Education, health facilities, and urban

services (including waste management) are especially affected.

Uncollected solid waste is one of Nairobi's most visible environmental problems: The municipal service which

seems to fail most strikingly is garbage collection and disposal because it causes littering and untidiness which has

an immediate adverse psychological impact. The lack of adequate garbage disposal in an area often results in

negative attitudes that contribute to a general deterioration of community development and cohesion (Mwaura,



1991: 35).

One half of the solid waste generated in Nairobi consists of organic matter. Toxic materials are estimated to be

0.2 percent of the total. For households alone, it is estimated that three-quarters of the waste is organic material

(Syagga, 1992: 28-29). Estimates for the daily generation of solid waste for the city as a whole range from 800

tonnes (Syagga 1992) to 1000 tonnes (Personal communication, NCC Cleansing Section). Daily disposal

capacity of the NCC is about 400 tonnes: less than fifty percent. The NCC estimates that private companies are

disposing about 50 tonnes a month. Waste collection services are provided only sporadically to low-income

areas because of poor accessibility and very high waste generation which cannot be handled with availablevehicles and equipment. Other problems encountered by the NCC Cleansing Section include inadequate

financing, a lack of recognition of the importance of satisfactory and effective waste management by the policy

makers, and inadequate training of managers (Personal communication, NCC Cleansing Section).

Privatization as an alternative to publicly provided waste management has been explored for developing

countries. Bartone et al. (1991) conclude that the private sector can operate more efficiently than the public

sector in providing municipal solid waste services, while Cointreau-Levine (1994) concludes that it is a possible

opportunity, not a panacea, for improving solid waste management in developing countries. For example, in

Nairobi, two formal sector companies provide private waste collection services. However, only upper-income

residents and businesses are able to afford the monthly fee. Neither company ventures into the informal

settlements since they are unable to collect fees from residents. The NCC has no official policy towards theprivatization of waste collection, nor do they provide any assistance to private companies to enable them to

operate in informal settlements (Personal communication, NCC Cleansing Section).

The NCC also lacks a policy on waste reduction at the source, and on involving community groups in waste

management (though it does participate in several notable efforts). Cleansing Section officials recognize the need

to reduce waste at its source, to conduct mass media campaigns, and to develop clear and enforceable policies

and bylaws promoting waste reduction, recycling, and community participation, but their is a lack of political will

to do so (Personal communication, NCC Cleansing Section). Because of poor financing and management, senior

managers in the NCC Cleansing Section envision their future role as one of coordinating all actors in the waste

management sector, including their own limited resources, the private sector, and the community sector.

Chapter Two

Redressing the Urban Service Imbalance: The Role of the Community Sector in

Waste and Environmental Management

2.1 Introduction

The community sector needs to be included in waste management efforts as both private and public sector actors

are unable to provide waste services to low-income areas of the city. Syagga (1992) supports the involvement of

the community sector as an effective way of increasing access of the poor to urban services, including waste

management. In Nairobi, organizations in the community sector, such as charitable organizations, ethnic

associations, professional "support" NGOs, welfare societies, village committees, self-help groups, and security

committees are already providing many of these services:

... a recent survey of eighty NGOs in Nairobi shows that support NGOs provide a wide range of services. Their

emphasis is on education (they provide nine per cent of all primary education and twenty-seven per cent of all

secondary education in the city) followed by health and welfare. Some NGOs also provide housing, while a few

provided recreation, water waste disposal, and environmental conservation services (Lee-Smith & Stren, 1991:

34).

The involvement of grassroots NGOs and CBOs has been mostly a rural phenomenon in Africa. As the number

of CBOs active in urban areas increases along with the number of urban poor, there is a need for local

government and community institutions to collaborate to improve urban management (Ibid., 35).

Syagga notes that the involvement of women is also crucial to the success of community-based solid waste

management:



What is the attitude of women to solid wastes? What general concerns do women have about access to wastes,

neighbourhood cleanliness, and how do they view their role in solid waste management as a business? Women

are the generators of most of the household waste in Nairobi, and therefore their commitment to improve their

earnings and work, would be a major entry to community-based solid waste management (Syagga, 1992: 34).

In Nairobi, many NGOs have a strong presence in the city's informal settlements. They play an important role in

providing education, health care,and many other urban services. The strength of the NGOs included in this study

is their recognition that solutions to urban problems are not isolated, but interconnected. This recognition is

reflected in the integrated approach they are taking to environmental management and community development.

The following section describes the NGOs and CBOs engaged in community waste management in Nairobi.

Further analysis of these case studies in later sections reveals how these CBOs and NGOs work together to

improve their community environment both in terms of environmental management and sources of income.

2.2 City-wide Community Efforts

The Clean-Up Nairobi Campaign and the Mathare Youth Sports Association

The NCC does not have an official policy on community involvement in waste management, but does participate

actively in several community clean-up programs. Most notable and well-publicized are the Mathare YouthSports Association and the Clean-Up Nairobi Campaign. The Mathare Youth Sports Association (MYSA)

began in 1987 as a small self-help initiative combining community responsibility with sports (football). Community

responsibility is promoted through clean-ups carried out once a week in the various villages comprising the

Mathare Valley informal settlement in Nairobi. Garbage is collected and removed and drainage ditches are

cleared with the aid of the NCC personnel and equipment (see Figures I.15 and I.16 in Appendix I). The idea

behind the clean-up stemmed from the concern that "local governments and NGOs rarely seek to meet the needs

of children , nor do they involve them in environmental action which will bring them direct benefits" (Munro, 1992:

207). The community service is performed in lieu of sports fees which most youths cannot afford to pay.

A few of the obstacles experienced by MYSA include health risks and injuries to the youths, difficulty involving

older youths in the clean-ups, promoting community cooperation in waste disposal, a lack of ability to expandinto recycling to generate income, involving female youths in sports, and an inability to accommodate street

children in its project (Personal communication, MYSA). For 1991, the total expenditures of MYSA were

$10,700 (US) on equipment and the coordinator's salary (Munro, 1992: 209). This money is provided by

Scandinavian donor agencies who also sponsor MYSA's "all-star" team to travel to Europe for occasional

tournaments.

The Clean Up Nairobi Campaign, founded in 1992, was a coalition of Nairobi residents who came together to

solve the city's waste problem with a hands-on approach. Activities were planned in coordination with the NCC

- much the same as the MYSA activities. The coalition was also looking into promoting waste reduction and

composting. However, Clean Up Nairobi has recently collapsed due to management difficulties, including

difficulties coordinating with, and getting support from the NCC and a lack of ability to devoet the time necessaryto get the campaign in full-swing (Personal Communication, Clean Up Nairobi).

The success of MYSA and the potential of Clean Up Nairobi to engender community responsibility in Nairobi

residents is essential to solving Nairobi's environmental problems. Sport was the motivating factor behind MYSA,

CUN lacked such a motivation which resulted in its collapse. In examining several of the composting groups in

Nairobi, it is evident that their success in waste management is also contingent on a motivating factor behind the

waste management, in this case, income generation.

2.3 Local NGOs Promoting Composting

Less publicized than the MYSA and Clean Up Nairobi activities are the composting groups in Nairobi's low-income areas which are supported by a number of local NGOs. These composting groups were established by

the NGOs through existing community-based organizations, usually women's savings or church groups. Three

local NGOs (Uvumbuzi Club, Undugu Society of Kenya, and the Foundation for Sustainable Development in

Africa) have provided support and training to approximately 12 CBOs doing composting in several of Nairobi's



low-income areas. (Refer to Figure 2.1 - Greater Nairobi Area: Locations of Informal Settlements and

Composting Groups.)

Uvumbuzi Club:

The Uvumbuzi Club is a membership organization with four programme areas: environmental conservation and

lobbying activities; promoting cycling as a non-motorised mode of transportation; low-cost trips to areas of

environmental interest; and providing members with a newsletter, videos, and a library of environmental

publications.

As part of their environmental lobbying campaign, Uvumbuzi started a "Garbage is Money" campaign in October

1992 to promote conservation as a source of livelihood for the poor. Five groups in the Dandora, Huruma and

Korogocho areas are involved in the composting of community organic waste. The group in Dandora also

operates a demonstration garden plot where the benefits of composting are demonstrable. In low-income areas,

where the organic component can comprise up to ninety percent of total wastes, composting is a very effective

waste management strategy.

Uvumbuzi has gradually withdrawn its support for the composting groups, except in the areas of transporting and

marketing the wastes. CBOs linked with Uvumbuzi include the Grogan 'A' Waste Recycling Group (Korogocho),

the Kuku Women's Group (Dandora), the Block-Making Women's Group (Kariobangi), the Korogocho

Mbolea Group and the Nyayo Market Group (Korogocho).

The Foundation for Sustainable Development in Africa:

The FSDA is a Kenyan registered NGO operating on the philosophy that for development to be truly sustainable,

it must be conducted as a profit/loss business. FSDA receives no funding from donor agencies or countries.

FSDA has five objectives:

fostering exchange of information through effective networking among African agricultural communities;

training and equipping local communities (especially youth and women) with skills in sustainable resource

management;

collecting and documenting information for effective planning and monitoring of agricultural and rural

development projects;

promoting harvesting, storage and marketing of surplus farm produce from local small-scale farmers; and

enhancing indigenous and introduced food processing technologies.

FSDA worked in cooperation with the Uvumbuzi Club in the "Garbage in Money" public awareness campaign

which included a "Garbage is Money" poster and an illustrated composting instruction booklet (FSDA, 1993). In

addition, the FSDA publishes a bi-monthly newsletter and offers a series of comprehensive training courses in

organic agriculture. FSDA was responsible for training the majority of composting groups and still sends an

extension worker to each of the groups approximately every two weeks. FSDA assists in packaging and

marketing the waste whenever possible. This usually involves hiring a pick-up truck to collect and deliver the

compost to a point-of-sale area like the City Park Hawkers Market in Parklands.

CBOs linked with FSDA include the City Park Hawkers Market Group, the Wekhonye Women's Group

(Dagoretti Corner); the Mwangaza Women's Group (Kayaba), a group in Mathare Valley and a new group (as

of late 1995) in Nairobi's Kawangware area.

Undugu Society of Kenya:

The Undugu Society is a charitable organization started in 1973 by a Dutch clergyman to deal with the growingproblem of street children in Nairobi. Initial activities included shelters, feeding programs, and basic education

and vocational training for these children. Undugu has since expanded its activities, guided by the philosophy that

in order to solve the problem of street children, one must go to the root of the problem (i.e., the communities

from which these children come). Undugu is continuing its rehabilitative programs for street children, but has



added shelter upgrading, counselling services, primary health care, informal sector development and urban

agriculture to its list of projects.

Undugu became involved in the composting efforts of Uvumbuzi and FSDA because they wanted to promote an

integrated approach to urban environmental problems through a clean living environment (waste recycling) and

food security (urban agriculture). FSDA was responsible for training two groups linked with Undugu (Kinyago

Bidii Group in Kitui-Pumwani and Ushirikisho Women's Group in Kibera). Undugu Society extension workers

integrate the composting activities with other community development efforts.

2.4 Community-Based Organizations Involved in Composting

Three CBOs were selected for more detailed study with the help of extension workers and supervisory staff from

the NGOs. The three groups chosen were the Kinyago Bidii Group, the Korogocho Mbolea Group and the City

Park Hawkers Market Group.

Korogocho Mbolea Group:

This group was selected because of the very low-incomes of the members and the location of the group in one of

Nairobi's largest informal settlements where there are few urban services and very little support from local

NGOs. The group consists of women who both live and work in the Nyayo Village area of Korogocho. Most ofthe women are heads of their households and generate their limited income through petty trading, usually

vegetable hawking.

Kinyago Bidii Group:

While still classified as poor, these women have more diversified sources of income thanks to the significant

involvement of the Undugu Society in their community. The benefits accrued to them through Undugu include

urban agriculture shambas, participation in handicraft manufacturing for the Undugu Society's gift shop, and

shelter upgrading. Kinyago Village, located in the Kitui-Pumwani area near Eastleigh Section III, is also

considerably smaller than the Korogocho group, making activities involving community cohesiveness, such as

environmental management, much easier.

City Park Hawkers Market:

This group differs primarily in its location in the more affluent Parklands area of Nairobi. While the other two are

residential communities, this group differs in that it is a commercial community of vegetable and used-clothing

hawkers. While the vegetable stalls attract affluent shoppers from Parklands, Muthaiga and Westlands, the used-

clothing dukas and hotelis (physically located at the back of the market) attract the people who work in the

market, or domestic servants from the local area. The women involved in the composting group travel to and

from the market on a daily basis. Most live in low-income areas in Nairobi's eastern areas, including Kayole and

Mathare Valley.

2.5 Environmental Benefits of Composting

One of the central arguments of this study is that composting can be an effective strategy for alleviating the

problems of unmanaged waste in Nairobi's informal settlements. Composting has managed to achieve a number

of beneficial environmental effects:

Improved health:

Composting group members reported a reduction in the incidence of environmental illnesses, including diarrhoea

and malaria (due to a decrease in stagnant water collecting in improperly disposed wastes). They noted significant

improvement in the health of their children who often played in waste-contaminated areas due to a lack of open

space for safe play.

The importance of a clean environment to human health, especially that of children, is described in detail by

Hardoy et al. (1992) and Satterthwaite (1993).



Open sites used by children for play are often contaminated with faecal matter and with household wastes also

attracting rats and other disease vectors. The increasing mobility of children and their natural curiosity and desire

to explore can also expose them to many environmental hazards.... Where provision for safe play space is

deficient, children will play on roads and garbage tips and other hazardous places (Hardoy et al., 1992: 105).

The health risks of exposure to pathogens are made worse in situations where limited access to clean water

(usually because it is an expensive commodity which must be purchased in small quantities) results in poor

hygiene practices in an attempt to conserve water. This puts women at risk more than men because of their

gender-assigned roles in family and household maintenance (Ibid., 106).

Improved physical environment:

Better drainage was one of the environmental improvements reported by composting group members. Wastes

were previously dumped in open drainage channels or in the Mathare or Nairobi Rivers. Flooding was therefore

a problem as a result of the uncollected wastes blocking drainage channels.

Group members also noted how much more hospitable the outdoor environment has become - they no longer

have to seek refuge inside their homes from the odours of rotting garbage. The psychosocial disorders associated

with poor living environments are well reported in the literature. Hardoy et al. (1992: 94) report that depression,

drug and alcohol abuse, suicide and violence are the most serious pyschosocial disorders traceable to poor

quality living environments, including noise, over-crowding, inappropriate design, and poor sanitation and waste

disposal.

Access has also improved in many of the areas since waste dumping is much more controlled. Foot paths and

main roads through the villages and markets are no longer blocked. Better access has been achieved by group

members encouraging other community members to dump their wastes in specific areas as opposed to random

dumping. Group members also distribute plastic bags to community members to encourage the separation of

organic wastes at source. They collect the bags once a week for composting.

Urban agriculture: Two of the groups surveyed (Kibera and Kinyago) have small shambas for group members

as a result of the involvement of the Undugu Society in their activities. In Kibera, the shambas are located on the

edge of the settlement adjacent to the Nairobi Dam (Figure 2.2). In Kinyago, the shambas were located where

the Nairobi River meets First Avenue Eastleigh, just north of Jogoo Road (Figure 2.3). The location of the

shambas next to a source of water allows for crop production throughout the year, not only during the rainy

season. The primary reason these groups produced compost is for use in their own shambas. There was general

agreement that the improved crop yield resulting from the application of compost is worth the effort. Both groups

expressed a desire to work even harder at composting if there is sufficient demand for them to sell excess

compost.

2.6 Limitations of Composting as a Waste Management Strategy

Despite the ability of composting to deal with the environmental problems described above, many environmentalproblems remain unsolved and require action beyond the efforts of the various groups.

Inorganic Waste Problems:

Despite the proliferation of informal waste picking in Nairobi (Syagga's 1992 research estimated that scavengers

collect 20 tonnes of the 800 to 1000 tonnes of solid waste generated daily in Nairobi), there are still inorganic

components of the waste stream which are not being reused or recycled and therefore represent a serious

environmental hazard. The most abundant of these wastes are the low-density polyethylene (LDPE) plastic bags

which have come into popular use in East Africa over the past five to ten years (refer to Figures I.3 and I.11 in

Appendix I).

LDPE plastics are currently not recyclable in Nairobi. Some of the composting groups (Hawkers Market and

Dagoretti Corner) used to collect plastic bags for a local processor of recyclable plastics (Rupshi Enterprises),

but recycling became unviable when chronic water shortages at Rupshi prevented proper cleaning of plastics

before processing. In addition, the Hawkers Market group started a project using plastic bags to manufacture

multi-purpose mats. However, the mats proved to be unmarketable as they could not sell them at a price that



compensated for production costs. Although all of the groups reuse plastic bags to collect organic wastes from

other households in the community, they still lack an appropriate method of final disposal.

Other components of the inorganic waste stream that pose environmental problems include alkaline batteries and

other toxic wastes. Spent batteries are commonly seen scattered about informal settlements as they represent a

popular power source in the unserviced areas. These wastes are hazardous to human and animal health as

animals feed from waste piles containing such wastes. Humans consume the products of these animals (meat,

eggs, milk), thereby putting their own health at risk.

In Mukuru-Kayaba, toxic industrial effluents were a major concern of residents since the village is located in

Nairobi's industrial area. Low-income urban residents have no option but to live in these contaminated areas

since they lack access to land in safer environments. They also depend on the proximity of their residence to their

source of employment as public transportation is an expense to be avoided if at all possible (Hardoy et al. 1992:

107).

Human wastes:

The lack of proper sanitation facilities, including toilets, showers, and sewage disposal has been well documented

in Nairobi (Lamba, 1994; USAID, 1993). According to a survey by Matrix Development Consultants, ninety

four percent of the population in informal settlements does not have access to adequate sanitation. Up to sixty per

cent of the population in Kibera and Korogocho must share pit latrines with approximately fifty other people

(Matrix Development Consultants, 1993: 9). Even when toilet facilities are available, people complain that they

are not conveniently located, that they are unclean, or that using them at night poses a security risk. Children are

especially vulnerable to inadequate toilets because they may lack access to household keys which unlock the

community toilets (refer to Figures I.10 and I.13 in Appendix I).

Access and Infrastructure:

While coordinated community efforts aimed at controlling dumping help to keep foot paths and unpaved access

roads clear, many of the informal settlements are almost impassable during the rainy season as earthen paths turn

to mud. This problem was noted to be especially severe in the villages located in river basins (Kinyago,

Korogocho, and Kibera). Rivers and streams cutting through informal settlements also pose barriers toaccessibility. (A foot bridge in Kibera had been dismantled for use as informal building materials.) The

composting efforts have a positive impact on flooding, but there are still problems during the rainy season when

plastics clog drainage channels.

Poor housing: Extremely low household incomes prevent people from making investments in improved shelter.

Indoor air quality is also poor as charcoal stoves and paraffin lamps are used without sufficient venting. These

problems are also described in detail in Hardoy et al. (1992). Again, these problems have an especially severe

impact on women who are likely to do the majority of the cooking. Only improvements in income generation can

improve this situation.

Urban agriculture: While composting has improved the viability of urban agriculture for two of the seven groupsstudied (Kinyago and Kibera), the other five groups do not have access to land for urban agriculture. Therefore,

they produce compost solely for sale outside their of communities. Composting would be more viable for them if

they could make use it themselves.

Livestock keeping is an important aspect of urban agriculture. Goats and poultry (and sometimes even swine and

cattle) are commonly kept in Nairobi's informal settlements. Urban farmers often station their livestock next to

waste heaps where the animals can feed off of disposed wastes. However, in feeding directly on wastes, animals

can be injured by sharp or poisonous objects. Furthermore, in warm climates, pathogen growth in kitchen waste

occurs rapidly, and livestock might become infected. Hence, the use of kitchen wastes as animal feed without

separation from other waste materials is not recommended (UNCHS, 1989: 45).

Problems faced by urban cultivators include occasional harassment by city officials as the legal status of urban

agriculture is unclear. In Kinyago and Kibera, even though access to urban shambas has been secured by the

Undugu Society, the women cultivators complain of crop theft and human waste disposal in the shambas. The

Undugu Society is now working with the cultivators to plan the shamba plots so that crop arrangement



discourages potential polluters and thieves.

2.7 Composting and Rural-Urban Linkages

The benefits of compost-making are not limited to mitigating the waste problems of urban areas. The interviews

with composting group members suggests that composting can have a positive impact on Kenya's rural areas.

Evidence from Kenya indicates that urban-learned skills are extremely important to rural development, especially

since most urban residents maintain strong links with their rural homes (Lee-Smith and Stren, 1991: 26). Many

composting group members identified composting skills as valuable to their farming activities "back home." Thosewith rural farms intended to use the urban-produced compost in rural crop production.

The potential of urban compost for use in rural areas needs further investigation, but it was outside the scope of

this study to explore the issue in detail. It appears that it could be an excellent means of reducing the negative

impact of Nairobi's spreading ecological footprint by feeding resources back into the countryside, thereby

lessening Nairobi's parasitic impact on the surrounding region. FSDA and the Uvumbuzi Club are well aware of

this potential, and have directed educational efforts to spreading this awareness. Composting group members

were also cognizant that use of compost produced in urban areas for rural agricultural could save the country a

great deal of the foreign exchange spent on importing synthetic fertilizers. For small-scale farmers, promoting the

use of compost is easily done through newsletters, including one put out through the Horticultural Crops

Development Authority of Kenya. However, the political and foreign interests vested in large scale commercialfarming make it difficult to promote the use of urban-produced compost in these cases.

Composting has managed to achieve environmental improvements in all seven of the areas included in this study.

Maintaining a clean and healthy environment is the principal motivation for women who participate in composting,

and this goal has been met to a significant extent. But improved waste management solves only a few of the

informal settlements' environmental problems and does very little to improve housing conditions or human waste

disposal, both of which also have a significant impact on the health of informal settlement residents. In chapter

three, the ability of composting to generate income will be assessed. In this regard, composting could have a

significant role in improving other environmental problems by providing residents with some of the income needed

for improving other aspects of their communities.

Chapter Three: Community Development through Composting

3.1 Introduction

Other than the environmental benefits identified in the previous section, it was assumed that income would be the

other major motivating factor in the success of the composting schemes. This proved to be only partially correct.

In this chapter, income generation is considered along with other aspects of community development to determine

the relative importance of each. The constraints on income generation and community development, including

gender considerations, are also explored. Finally, ways of improving income generation and community

development opportunities through composting are explored.

3.2 Amounts and Relative Importance of Income Generated

Table 3.1 compares the seven groups included in the study in terms of membership, the duration of composting

activities, and total income generated from composting. A quick examination of the data in the table reveals that

there is no apparent relationship between size of membership and the duration of the activity, and the amount of

income generated. Rather, in the course of the research, location was found to be the most important determinant

of financial success of the composting groups. For Korogocho, Kayaba, Kibera and Dagoretti Corner, the

marketing of their compost is difficult because of their location at the interior of informal settlements, accessible

only by unsurfaced, narrow roads. On the other hand, the most financially successful of the

Table 3.1: Inter-Group Comparisons: Composting Income Generated

Composting

Group

Number of

Members

Date Started Profits from

Composting



(Ksh) (as of

April 1995)

Hawkers

Market

15 October 1994 36,000

Kinyago 27 July 1994 3000

Korogocho 20 June 1993 18,000 to

20,000

Dandora 13 May 1992 n/a*

Dagoretti

Corner

12 September

1994

1500

Kayaba 24 July 1993 1732

Kibera 15 1994 n/a*

* Not available: group members do not keep records of the profits generated.

composting groups, the City Park Hawkers Market, cannot keep up with the demand for its compost. This

success is due to the location of the composting plot at the point of sale, where the activity is both highly visible

and convenient to customers, including high-income customers with large, private gardens.

When the data were collected, the Kinyago group had not yet reported a large volume of sales because they had

not started marketing their compost aggressively. However, they remain confident that their sales will be

successful because their composting plot is located adjacent to a major paved road (First Avenue Eastleigh -

refer to Figure 2.3). The Kinyago group has formulated a marketing strategy which includes the use of signs to

advertise the availability of their compost. While confident that their compost will be marketable, the Kinyago and

Kibera groups are, at the same time, less concerned about selling the compost since they have their urbanagriculture projects to fall back on.

The environmental benefits outlined in chapter two are the primary reason that the various community-based

organizations participate in composting, but the activity is also important in improving non-physical environmental

aspects of the community. As part of standardized interviewing carried out for this study, participants were asked

to rank, in order of importance to them, non-environmental reasons for engaging in composting activities. As

presented in Table 3.2, the interviewees were given a choice of five reasons. These reasons were ranked on a

scale of one through five, with one being the most important, and five being the least important reason for

undertaking composting.

Table 3.2: Reasons for Undertaking Composting (average rankings for each group)

Reason for

Composting

Kaiyaba Korogocho Kinyago Dandora Wanyee Kibera Hawkers All

Groups

Income

generation

4.3 1.7 2.7 3 4 2.3 4.7 3.2

Keeping

busy

4.7 4.3 4 5 3 4.3 3.6 4.1

Exchanging

information

and ideas

with other

group

members

2.7 2.3 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.6



Acceptance

and

integration

into the

community

2 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.7 2.7 2.4

Recognition

andpublicity

outside of

your

community

1.3 4.3 4.7 3.3 4.3 4.3 4.3 3.8

Table 3.2 presents the average ranks of each of the five reasons for each of the seven composting

groups. In the last column, the average ranks for all groups are presented.

Overall, the rankings reveal that exchanging information and ideas and acceptance and integration are the most

important reasons for composting. However, when the groups are examined individually, important differences

between groups are revealed. For example, the Korogocho group, one of the lowest income groups, rankedincome generation as their primary reason for engaging in composting. This could be attributed to the relative

severity of poverty of the Korogocho women.

3.3 Constraints on Income Generation

The biggest constraint faced by most composting groups in generating income is finding a market for the compost.

The expense of transportation prevents the groups from bringing the compost to an accessible point of sale. The

City Park Hawkers Market would be an ideal location for other composting groups to sell their compost because

of the popularity of the market with upper-income Parklands shoppers. Members of the Hawkers Market group

are not opposed to marketing the other groups' compost provided that good quality is maintained and theyreceive some sort of commission for storing and selling the compost. However, the problem remains as to how to

transport the compost to the Hawkers Market.

A further constraint in marketing the compost is that there is some urgency in getting the compost to market:

compost created with aerobic methods should be used within one month of production; otherwise the nitrogen

value decreases and hence its value as a fertilizer (UNCHS, 1989: 46). Most of the groups have nowhere to

store the compost, so it deteriorates rapidly in harsh sunlight.

In transporting their compost to a point of sale, the main problem experienced is in the low value of the compost

preventing transportation expenses from being recovered through profits. This is also a major barrier to marketing

the compost to rural farmers who could constitute a large market for the compost as composting groups lack a

mechanism to link them directly to peasant and commercial farming in their regions.

Community group members also identified the costs associated with composting as being prohibitive. While the

inputs required (gloves, gumboots, garden tools, sieves, packaging materials, and storage and shelter) are

relatively inexpensive and low-tech, they still represent significant expenditures for low-income women. Added to

this is the rent that many groups pay to the local chief for the composting site. In the case of Dagoretti Corner, the

group pays Ksh. 1000 per month for their plot. This is more than many community members pay for their rooms

or houses each month! If the women had access to credit, these costs could be recouped through the sale of the

compost.

Community resistance to composting in terms of both ridicule and unwillingness to cooperate limits the desirability

of composting as a method of income generation. Some women are discouraged from participating because

composting is equated with scavenging and it therefore downgrades their status in the community. Other

community members expect to receive financial incentives in exchange for their organic wastes since they

perceive that the composting groups are generating a profit from composting. However, the low resale value of

the compost and the limited sales thus far mean that the women are not generating extensive income and cannot



afford to pay the community for the separation of its organic wastes.

In the greater Nairobi community, there are problems within the formal waste processing sector which limit the

profitability of informal sector waste management activities, including the activities of the composting groups.

Many of the composting groups were involved in collecting LDPE plastics for Rupshi Enterprises, but the chronic

water shortages prevent them from processing most of the plastics collected. The plastics are often too dirty to be

processed. Likewise, even formal sector industries like Rupshi suffer from a lack of available credit and

investment which prevents them from expanding to meet the high demand for recycled plastics. Rupshi

Enterprises eventually stopped collecting (and paying for) the plastics gathered by the composting groups.

3.4 Gender and Development Issues in Composting

An important advantage accounting for the sustained interest in composting activities is that composting integrates

well with women's triple roles: household and family care, income generation, and community management. The

location of the composting sites within market areas (in the cases of Hawkers Market and Korogocho) where the

women engage in hawking allows them to monitor their businesses while undertaking composting activities. But in

some informal settlements, the location of the composting site actually makes women's daily responsibilities more

difficult. In the case of Kinyago, the composting site is located across a busy road (First Avenue Eastleigh - refer

to Figure 5.2 ), making it difficult for the women to monitor their children. It also means that the women have to

haul water to the composting site. Thus, it is important that the composting plots be strategically located so as toease the burden on women. This is easier said than done, however, when their is a shortage of available and

appropriate land in informal settlements.

In terms of women's roles as community managers, the NGOs, in initiating the composting projects, targeted pre-

existing women's groups concerned with community health care and/or income generation. Composting proved

complementary to these activities by providing a healthier living environment and in diversifying their sources of

income. Like other women's group activities, composting also provides a forum for women to exchange

information and ideas which, in the case of the majority of the Nairobi composting groups, exceeds the

importance of generating income through the project.

Some groups also use the profits gained through composting to improve much-needed community facilities. TheKuku Women in Dandora invested some of their composting profits in a nursery school for their children. This

eases their child care responsibilities, enabling them to engage in other important activities. The Kuku Women

have also used the money to purchase utensils and dishes for entertaining guests. They enjoy the prestige and

publicity that their composting efforts bring them. This also reinforces a sense of pride in their community which

they enjoy sharing with visitors. Many of these visitors are brought to the Kuku Women by the NGOs in order

that they too become enthusiastic about starting a composting project in their own community.

Unfortunately, composting activities are not entirely free from gender-related constraints. All of the groups lack

significant support from men in the community. The composting activities are almost entirely carried out by

women, though some women do receive occasional help from husbands or sons. At the same time, the women's

groups depend on a male chairman to represent their interests to the rest of the community. This may not be thebest possible arrangement for addressing women's strategic needs, including political empowerment and the

recognition of the importance of their work. The NGOs might help to improve this situation by promoting more

democratic decision-making structures in the communities. The Undugu Society is well positioned to do this.

While women are willing to engage in composting because it corresponds with their triple roles, many complain of

the hard physical labour that composting entails. Some were not pleased that the composting project added even

more work to their already gruelling daily routines.

3.5 Improving the Sustainability of Composting Projects

The constraints faced by the composting groups suggest that future efforts in improving the viability of thecomposting projects must include building strong community support and involvement, and developing the groups'

business and marketing skills.

There is a need in Nairobi to increase public awareness and mobilize community support for waste reduction and



recycling. As developing countries like Kenya are influenced by processes of globalization, consumption (and

waste production) patterns are becoming more like those in the West, and public awareness campaigns must be

directed towards curbing the problems that will arise from these changing lifestyle patterns. These efforts are best

directed to young people through mass media and through the organization of workshops and meetings at the

neighbourhood level (UNCHS, 1993: III.2.19). In Nairobi, MYSA's effort to link sports with community service

and environmental responsibility is an enlightened example of how even the poorest children can be included in

such initiatives.

Awareness campaigns and education programs must explain the benefits of composting and recycling and informpeople of how they can participate. This awareness building must not only be included at the outset of a project,

but should be carried on throughout (Ibid.). In this regard there is a need for strong leadership, as the problems

experienced by the Clean Up Nairobi campaign have indicated.

The composting groups are also in need of business training and improved access to credit. With regard to

training, the groups need to develop marketing and financial management skills so that they are able to be more

self-sufficient in identifying markets and planning business strategies. They currently rely on the NGOs for these

skill. This is not sustainable over the long term. Likewise, if it is to be a truly community-based project, decisions

must be made democratically by group members with the NGOs serving only as technical advisors.

Responsibility for managing the project must be gradually transferred to the community. Outside technical

assistance must always be available to the composting groups, but unless the groups have both financial anddecision-making autonomy, they will never have the confidence nor the sense of ownership needed to make the

project sustainable.

As the composting evolves into a more profitable endeavour, the groups must develop and implement a

consistent means of dividing profits among members. In the case of a Mexican composting project, the

production of compost eventually stopped because irresolvable disputes developed over whether income should

be divided equally among members or according to the amount of labour contributed (Schmink, 1989: 159).

The availability of credit and fiscal incentives are also critical issues affecting the viability of composting as an

income generating activity. The groups need to be provided with starters or guarantees in order to increase their

access to credit facilities. This is also required for many formal sector waste-related industries like RupshiEnterprises. If Rupshi were able to expand its waste plastics processing capacity, it would also benefit the

informal sector waste collectors and middlemen with whom Rupshi deals.

Other aspects of community development may be equally or even more important than income generation.

However, the greatest advantage presented by composting is its potential to fulfil women's roles as community

managers and income earners through one activity. The time and labour saving potential of composting, though

not presently developed, combined with the opportunity it presents for women to share ideas and develop a

sense of community belonging, make it a viable development alternative for Nairobi. However, improvements

need to be made in training and in providing credit to the groups, and waste management carried out by CBOs

must be supported by a community mobilized to support and participate in waste minimization and recycling.

Chapter Four: Conclusions

4.1 Introduction

Given the environmental and financial opportunities and constraints identified through this study, what final

assessment can be made of Nairobi's efforts in community-based waste management? What are the most

appropriate roles for actors in Nairobi's waste management sector? What insights are provided by this research

in terms of the relationship of gender to waste management, the need to promote urban agriculture and create

demand for organic waste, and the environmental and health significance of solid waste management?

4.2 Summary of the Environmental, Income and Community Development Impactsof the Composting Projects

The composting groups have been highly successful in meeting the environmental objectives of their composting

projects. While recognizing this success, the limitations of composting in terms of environmental management must



be acknowledged. Composting does not have a direct impact on two of the most serious environmental problems

of informal settlements: human waste disposal and poor housing. If composting eventually develops into a

successful income generating project, households and communities will be financially empowered to make

improvements in these areas.

The composting groups have not yet managed to generate substantial profits because of marketing and

transportation constraints. When other community development-related advantages of composting are taken into

account, it is evident that income generation is only one of many opportunities which motivate the women to

participate. Equally important is the opportunity to exchange ideas and information with other members of thecommunity. It is doubtful that composting will be sustainable unless it is able to meet more than just the

environmental needs of the women and their communities. Those groups experiencing the most success and the

most satisfaction with composting are those for whom composting has provided significant income, and those

engaged in urban agriculture.

4.3 Appropriate Roles for Actors in the Waste Management Sector

From this study, several conclusions about the most appropriate roles for the various actors in Nairobi's waste

management sector can be drawn:

Local Authorities:

The primary role of the NCC should be that of advisor to the other actors in waste management. This would

entail reducing the NCC's role as a service provider to a minimum. The NCC should only be involved in the

provision of services when it is not possible for the private or community sector to do so. The NCC Cleansing

Section recognizes that this should be its role, but faces substantial barriers in its lack of administrative capacity

and the lack of political will on the part of city councillors.

The Informal Sector:

There is a need to improve employment conditions as well as access to support services and markets of recycling

industries for those who deal in waste picking. In doing so, however, there is a risk of formalizing the sector. This

would have the effect of alienating the very people who rely on the sector for their livelihoods.

As noted by Odegi-Awuondo (1994), waste picking is already a highly organized activity consisting of networks

of waste pickers and middlemen. Thus, a plausible option for improving the conditions in the informal waste

economy could be cooperatives. This has worked in a number of Asian countries (UNCHS, 1993).

Community-Based Organizations:

Excellent opportunities exist for CBOs to provide a wide range of urban services, including waste management, in

informal settlements. Because of its impact on community health, waste management fits well with the concerns of

those groups dealing with issues of community concern. As for community members not directly active in the

CBO, they need to participate in waste management by separating their wastes at source so that contamination isprevented and the work of CBOs and informal sector waste pickers is facilitated.

Non-Governmental Organizations:

NGOs are important links between local authorities and CBOs. They have a role to play in providing technical

advice and training to CBOs. They also have a city-wide role in educating and mobilizing broad-based support

for community-based waste management. If such support is created, it should be instrumental in generating the

political will needed to make the necessary changes.

In Nairobi, the NGOs have successfully educated and motivated the CBOs on the benefits and opportunities of

composting. They are also attempting to build broad-based support for composting and recycling through the"Garbage is Money" poster campaign, along with continual participation in environmental and community events

throughout the city. The NGOs could mobilize wider support, but they lack the financial and human resources to

do so.



The NGOs have not been effective in providing the groups with the business and marketing skills they need to

generate a profit through composting. The NGOs themselves need to develop these skills, or seek out other

NGOs to provide this training on their behalf.

The Formal Private Sector:

The private sector does have an important, although limited role, to play in waste management in developing

countries. In Nairobi, the private sector is an effective provider of waste management services to upper income

businesses and residential areas. However, there is no bylaw enforcing those who can afford it to make use of

these services. The NCC might consider implementing such a bylaw. Again, NGOs should initiate mass media

and other types of educational campaigns to increase awareness about the hazards of unmanaged wastes, even in

upper income areas.

Within informal settlements, the private sector cannot provide waste management services because of the inability

of residents to pay for these services and the poor accessibility to these areas. Therefore, there is still a need for

local authorities to work with CBOs in providing services to these areas.

The International Donor Community:

Many donor agencies already have extensive funding programs for NGOs in developing countries. The NGOs

examined in this case study have received funding from the United Nations Environment Programme, severalScandinavian countries, and the Dutch government. This is an effective method of funding local environmental

initiatives since the NGOs and CBOs are often closer to the people than governments, including local authorities.

At the same time, the international community must provide assistance to local authorities to improve their human

resources and administrative and financial capacity. Investments in infrastructure and equipment will not be

sustainable in the long term because local authorities lack maintenance capacity.

Finally, international organizations, with the full participation of NGOs and local authorities, should support the

creation of a regional network which promotes waste recycling and reuse. Relationships between city planners,

the private sector, NGOs, CBOs and recycling industries would be useful in sharing innovations and best

practices in waste management. Such a network could also result in a powerful lobby.

4.4 The Research Agenda on Waste Management in East Africa

This study has contributed to an understanding of three aspects of solid waste management in sub-Saharan

Africa: the relationship of gender to waste management, the need to promote urban agriculture and create

demand for organic waste, and the environmental and health significance of solid waste management.

Waste management activities fit within the gender-assigned roles and responsibilities of women, including

household maintenance, income generation and community management. When properly organized, composting

provides women with the opportunity to stay close to their home or place of business so that they can engage in

other activities related to their triple roles. However, many of the women who participated in this study complainthat composting adds to their workload, or that other ventures suffered because of their work on the composting

projects. Therefore, for many of the women, composting is not meeting their needs and is actually adding to their

daily burden. For those groups generating high profits from composting, or those groups also engaging in urban

agriculture, composting has improved their circumstances and opportunities.

The opportunity to engage in urban agriculture is therefore a very important determinant of the success of

composting, Limited access to land, especially in informal settlements, makes urban agriculture a difficult strategy

to promote for many of these women. There is a clear need for local authorities and NGOs to cooperate in

providing access to land for these purposes. This has already worked for the Undugu Society in gaining plots for

urban agriculture in Kibera and Kinyago. The other NGOs, FSDA and Uvumbuzi, should consider working with

the NCC and the Undugu Society to provide this opportunity to other composting groups.

Even so, the application of compost in urban areas provides only a limited market for the compost, especially

considering the amount of organic waste generated. Ideally, the composting groups could be doing very well if

they had access to rural markets. The application of urban compost in rural areas could be a significant step in



reducing the spread of Nairobi's ecological footprint. These strategies rely not only on the support of rural

farmers, but also on finding affordable means of transporting the waste and in creating the political will to support

these initiatives.

The environmental importance of waste management has not been quantified in this study, but the anecdotal

evidence reported by the women is sufficient to suggest that composting can have a significant impact in

improving community health. In fact, many women continue to compost despite the limited financial opportunities

it currently presents, suggesting that they are aware of and value the environmental improvements achieved

through composting.

In conclusion, this study has demonstrated the important links that can be made between environmental

management, income generation and community development. It has also identified waste management at the

household and community level as a gendered activity. The success in composting in Nairobi has been achieved

partially through the recognition of these roles and the targeting of appropriate community-based organizations.

Ultimately, this study has shown that in order for community-based waste management to be a success, it must

address more than the need for improved environmental management; it also must provide opportunities for

income generation and the development of strong community bonds. Together with the support provided by

NGOS, community-based waste management promotes internal solidarity around shared concerns, which in turn

creates a momentum for demanding greater accountability of government and increased room for participatory

decision-making. In Nairobi, we are witnessing the beginning of such a process as CBOs and NGOs unite todeal with urban environmental problems and poverty, and the NCC recognizes that it must radically transform its

approach to urban service provision.

Appendix I

A Photographic Essay of Community Waste Management in Nairobi, Kenya

(Photos not available at this time)

The following photo essay was compiled using the photographs taken by members of the Hawkers Market,

Kinyago and Korogocho composting groups. This research technique, commonly referred to as native

photography, was combined with photo-elicitation to reveal the motivations, the emotions and thoughts

represented by these pictures. The quotations (except for Figures I.15 and I.16) are derived from comments

made by composting group members during the photo-elicitation focus groups.

Figure I.1"This picture is trying to show how people make a living out of the garbage. The old lady, she is trying to collect

fruits and vegetables to go and sell. And for the little children, they are trying to collect waste papers from the

same garbage to go and sell to other people who are doing recycling work."

Figure I.2

"We are trying to show how it is hard work doing composting. It shows how hard these ladies are working and

they are only a few. The piles have to be turned every seven days and the conditions are very untidy. You can

see that there is flooded water around which is a health hazard. Also the tools they are using are not supposed to

be used by ladies. It is hard work!"

Figure I.3"We were trying to show how some of the people are not doing a good job. As you can see, there is a lot of

garbage lying around while the bin is still empty. The market employees are supposed to put the garbage in the

bin for the City Council to come and collect. The polythene plastics are very bad for our environment - they can't

be reused."



Figure I.4

"It is trying to show how these ladies do the sorting of the greens and how they work together. They help each

other to lift the greens because it is hard to put them on top of the pile."

Figure I.5

"It is showing how the ladies work cooperatively. You can see how all of them are busy. There is no one who is

standing idle. And the small boy who is at the end is trying to snatch whatever he can get: maybe a green pepper

or maybe a good orange. Because he's a 'parking' boy, he makes his living out of the garbage."

Figure I.6

"This photo is very important for the composting group because among all the ladies, there is only one man who

volunteered himself to work with the ladies. It is encouraging because you find it is usually only women, but with

our group there is one man, the chairman of the market."

Figure I.7

"It is showing the piles that we have made. We have a big problem because we don't have a shade. When it is

too sunny the piles get very dry and when it is raining, the piles get very wet. That is why you can see the black

plastic on the ground - when it is too wet we cover the piles with the plastic. "It is also showing the sieve. The

ladies sieve the compost before selling it because they don't

waste management in nairobi kenya

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