What does it mean to designate the Nairobi River Corridor as a Special Planning Area?

The Nairobi River, a polluted lifeline snaking through Kenya’s capital, is at the center of a bold but contentious plan. On March 6, 2025, the Nairobi County government gazetted the Nairobi River Corridor as a Special Planning Area (SPA), a move aimed at transforming the degraded waterway into a clean, vibrant urban asset.

But for many of the 2.5 million residents living in informal settlements along its banks, the announcement has stirred fear of evictions and land grabs, casting a shadow over promises of restoration and social housing.

What is a Special Planning Area?

Anchored in Kenya’s Physical and Land Use Planning Act of 2019, the SPA designation, is a legal framework to guide structured development in areas requiring urgent or specialized planning.

For the Nairobi River Corridor, the Special Planning Area is defined as a 60-meter buffer zone—30 meters for the riparian reserve and 30 meters for development and adjoining areas of interest — stretching from Naivasha Road to Ruai and including tributaries like the Ngong and Mathare rivers. The goal is to create an Integrated Development Plan within two years underwritten by the Rivers regeneration project, that will address pollution, flooding, and unregulated construction while fostering sustainable urban growth.

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The process is systematic and participatory, requiring public input through forums, questionnaires, and media campaigns. A notice issued by Patrick Mbogo, Nairobi’s County Executive Committee Member for Environment, on March 6, 2025, invited residents to submit views within two weeks, signalling the start of a transparent planning effort.

Once drafted, the plan will undergo further public review, county assembly approval, and potential appeals, ensuring checks and balances.

Why the SPA Matters

The Nairobi River is in crisis. Encroached by informal settlements, industries, and even upscale estates, its riparian zones are choked with waste—2,400 tons of solid waste daily, 20% plastic—and contaminated by 66 pollution points along its mainstem and 113 along the Ngong tributary.

Flooding, worsened by climate-driven events like El Niño, devastates communities like Mukuru, where 60% of Nairobi’s population lives on just 6% of its land. Contaminated water irrigates half the city’s vegetables, posing health risks, while downstream, the Thwake Dam’s water quality suffers.

The SPA aims to reverse this decline by:

• Protecting the Riparian Zone: Reclaiming riparian reserves to prevent further encroachments and restore ecosystems through wetlands and tree planting.
• Mitigating Pollution and Flooding: Developing infrastructure like the Nairobi Trunk Sewers, upgraded Kariobangi Wastewater Treatment Plant and River engineering incorporating green solutions like constructed wetlands park-systems to filter pollutants.
• Promoting Social Equity: Building 10,000 affordable housing units and markets for 10,000 traders, replacing flood-prone shanties with dignified homes and economic hubs.
• Enhancing Urban Resilience: Mapping flood zones with GIS and hydrological modelling to guide interventions and harmonizing laws like the Water Act and Environment Management Act for stronger riparian protection.

The SPA draws inspiration from successes like the Mukuru SPA, designated in 2017, which improved roads, water, and sanitation in informal settlements through participatory planning.

Planners see the Nairobi River SPA as a chance to create riverfront parks, non-motorized transport routes, and community centers, boosting quality of life and land values by up to 30%.

Why the Skepticism?

Despite its promise, the SPA has sparked alarm, particularly among informal settlement residents. Posts on social media reflect fears that the 60-meter buffer zone could lead to mass evictions, with some comparing it to colonial-era land seizures. “Thousands of Kenyans risk eviction as KK govt plan to designate Nairobi river corridor (60m either side) as a Special Planning Area,” warned one user on X, echoing widespread distrust.

These concerns are rooted in history. Nairobi’s urban planning, from colonial master plans to the outdated 2015 NIUPLAN, has often marginalized low-income communities. Informal settlements like Kibera and Mathare, housing 49 of the city’s 200 slums, face constant threats of displacement. Past river cleanup efforts, often manual and short-lived, failed to address systemic issues, leaving residents skeptical of grand promises.

The SPA’s 60-meter buffer zone, which includes private and public land, raises fears of land annexation. Residents like Mary Wanjiku, a Dandora shopkeeper, worry about losing homes without compensation. “They say it’s for the river, but who benefits? Not us,” she said. The plan’s emphasis on land value capture—reinvesting increased property values—fuels suspicions that developers and elites could profit at the expense of the poor.

What the SPA Is Not

To counter misinformation, county officials clarify that the SPA is not:

A Land Grab: It does not annul valid title deeds or annex private land.

A Demolition Order: Existing unplanned settlements or slums won’t be razed to make way for housing without legal justification, resettlement plans, or compensation.

An Eviction Notice: Any displacements for environmental protection must follow legal protocols, ensuring fairness and dignity.

The county emphasizes transparency, with public participation mandated at every stage. Comments dismissed by planners must be justified in writing, and aggrieved residents can appeal to the County Physical and Land Use Planning Liaison Committee or the Environmental and Land Court

Challenges Ahead

The SPA’s success hinges on overcoming significant hurdles. Nairobi’s rapid urbanization, with a 5.14% annual population growth rate, strains planning capacity. Inconsistent laws and weak enforcement have allowed encroachments across income levels, complicating riparian reclamation.

The county’s Sh39 billion budget gap for 2025/26 could delay infrastructure projects, while public distrust, fuelled by past governance failures, demands robust engagement.

Climate change adds urgency. Extreme weather events, like the 2024 floods that displaced thousands, underscore the need for resilient infrastructure. The SPA’s data-driven approach—using GIS, ecological assessments, and hydrological modelling—aims to address these risks, but implementation within two years will test the county’s resolve.

A River’s Redemption?

The Nairobi River SPA is a high-stakes gamble to restore an ecological and social lifeline. If successful, it could transform Nairobi into a model of sustainable urbanism, with clean rivers, green spaces, and equitable housing. The Mukuru SPA’s progress offers hope, but scaling this to the river’s 27.2-kilometer corridor requires unprecedented coordination and trust-building.

For now, residents watch warily as public forums begin. The county must prove that the SPA is not another top-down scheme but a genuine effort to uplift all Nairobians.