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Le
notizie su Korogocho e gli slums di Nairobi
direttamente dai
quotidiani kenyani
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6
febbraio 2007
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THE
DAILY NATION
How I lost my city plot to slum
dwellers
NEWS
Publication Date: 2007/02/04
The
following is a city dweller’s sad story:
I bought my
plot at Riverbank of Nairobi’s Kariobangi South estate
from a city council employee, and the sale agreement was sealed
at a lawyer’s office on October 12, 1994.
On the 17th
of the same month, a council surveyor from the planning
department — a Mr Kaniaru — showed me my beacons and
I obtained a beacon certificate. Part of the text on it read
“that I have full knowledge of the beacons positions and
shall take all reasonable measures to protect them.” But
little did I know how difficult this would be.
Being a
council employee, the former owner gave me a lot of confidence
that although the area was not serviced at the time, the council
would move in and put in the usual infrastructure — roads,
sewerage and power lines. This was, however, not to be, and this
partly explains why it took long for me -- and other plot owners
in the area -- to move in and start building on my plot.
I
paid the requisite amounts, then one day when I decided to check
on my plot, the drama began. Slum dwellers had moved in and
claimed ownership. I was scared as I was informed that they
would burn me to cinders should I ever show my face again.
My
protestations that I owned the plot and had paid the council for
the beacons, which I was able to identify, fell on deaf ears.
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6
febbraio 2007
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THE
DAILY NATION
Kibera is no tourist
site
EDITORIALS
Publication Date: 2/2/2007
When
US presidential hopeful Barack Obama visited Kenya late last
year, one of his points of call was the Kibera slums. Before
him, a number of celebrities, including Chris Rock and others
before him, had visited the ‘‘biggest slum in
Africa’’, and were presumably suitably shocked
before they flew off to more conventional tourist resorts.
Now,
no less a personality than new United Nations Secretary-General
Ban Ki-moon has gone there to see for himself what the
‘‘famous’’ slum is all about.
And he
is perhaps the only one who indicated that he would like the
place where thousands of Kenyans lead precarious lives to be
turned into something more than a tourist attraction.
When
Mr Ban visited the slum on Tuesday, he did go there with words
of hope, saying a lot of work needed to to be done to make it
more habitable, but like the perfect diplomat, falling short of
announcing any concrete measures the UN could take to make this
hope a reality.
What is this fascination with Kibera among
people who do not know what real poverty means?
More to the
point, how do Kenyans themselves feel about this back-handed
compliment as the custodians of backwardness, filth, misery and
absolute deprivation?
While it is true that the Government,
after years of neglect, has finally started the first phase of
the Kibera Slum Upgrading Programme by building a block of flats
meant to house at least 600 families in the next four months,
this clearly, is not enough.
It is therefore necessary for
the Government to seek financial help to make Kibera a pilot
project, and proceed to build shelter for the hundreds of
thousands who are forced by circumstances to live in the city’s
slums.
This is a tall order, and we can only hope that the UN
chief took back with him enough lasting impressions to make him
want to provide the finances that might help erase this eyesore
from the face of the earth.
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2
febbraio 2007
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THE
DAILY NATION
New UN chief gives hope to Nairobi's slum
dwellers
NEWS
Publication Date: 1/31/2007
UN
Secretary-general Ban Ki-Moon yesterday made a historic visit to
Kibera slum - and gave thousands of residents a message of hope
and a promise of a better future.
Mr Ban jetted into the
country at 3 pm and headed straight to Soweto village in
Africa’s biggest slum, mingled with the residents and
looked at their way of living.
"I have brought message
of hope and promise of better future. The slum dwellers should
not lose hope,” the secretary general said.
Mr Ban who
was accompanied by Education minister George Saitoti, his
Housing counterpart Soita Shitanda and assistant ministers Betty
Tett and Moses Wetangula promised more UN support to efforts by
the government and UN-Habitat to upgrade Kibera slum.
“Serious
work needs to be done here. The upgrading is needed as part of
fulfilment of Millennium Development Goals. We need more
resources for a better world,” he said.
The UN boss who
succeeded Ghanaian Kofi Annan is expected to meet President
Kibaki and later plant a tree at UN headquarters in Gigiri. in
his first visit to Africa after as secretary general is in Kenya
after attending African Union Summit in Ethiopia. He leaves the
country today.
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31
gennaio 2007
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THE
DAILY NATION
Nairobi World Social Forum comes to an
end
NEWS
Story by MUGUMO MUNENE
Publication Date:
1/26/2007
A riot of sounds and colours marked the close
of the seventh edition of the World Social Forum in Nairobi as
thousands of delegates marched to Uhuru Park.
The ceremony —
attended by delegates from all over the world — kicked off
with a march from Korogocho slums and a marathon race from
Kariobangi.
World Social Forum delegates participate in a
walk through Nairobis Korogocho slums yesterday .
The
16-kilometre race was graced by world-famous long distance
runner Paul Tergat.
At the park, music by Kenyan artistes
blared from a huge state-of-the-art sound system.
Rallying
around the clarion call of “Another World Is Possible”,
the participants placed social justice, international
solidarity, gender equality, peace and defence of the
environment on the agenda.
The meeting is timed to coincide
with the World Economic Forum — a meeting of top CEOs and
select world leaders in Davos, Switzerland, to discuss better
management of the world economy.
Hundreds of those in
attendance surged to the front, dancing and waving placards and
banners.
Speakers, who included 2004 Nobel laureate Prof
Wangari Maathai and international human rights activists Chico
Whitaker and Danny Glover, hailed the meeting, which organisers
say was attended by more than 60,000 participants, as a
success.
“When you work with poor people, you get
discouraged but that changes when you meet other people who face
the same challenges as you are dealing with. You know then that
you are not alone,” Prof Maathai told the crowds at the
park.
Human race
Debt cancellation activist Wahu Kaara
said amid cheers; “We in Africa refuse to be the continent
identified as poor. We have hope and determination and
everything to offer to the prosperity of the human race. Debts
must be cancelled.”
Mr Whitaker said that the forum —
held for the first time in Africa — saw more than 1,200
events take place in six days.
“Those who cause
conflict must understand that peace is not just the absence of
war. It is the presence of justice. The victory of the WSF at
Kasarani is mobilising grassroots organisations to have
progressive leadership in power. The movements must resonate
into the countries that commit atrocities,” said Mr
Glover.
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31
gennaio 2007
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THE
DAILY NATION
Slum dwellers’ special race to be
run today from Korogocho
SPORT
Publication Date:
1/25/2007
A special race dubbed “Marathon for Basic
Rights: Another World is Possible Even for Slum Dwellers”
will be run in Nairobi today on the sidelines of the World
Social Forum.
“About 10,000 residents of various
informal settlements in the country are expected to compete in
the race alongside counterparts from other countries, in a bid
to compel Governments to improve living conditions in slums,”
the organisers said.
The 14-kilometre run will begin in
Korogocho at 7 am, and go through the streets of Nairobi, ending
at the Uhuru park.
Former world women’s marathon
record holder Tegla Loroupe and Paul Tergat, the current men’s
world marathon record holder, will be among those at the
starting line.
“We want to send a message of hope to
slum populations that another free and just world is possible,
even with the slum dwellers,” Danielle Moschetti, who is
helping to arrange the event, was quoted as saying by IPS news
service.
“The marathon will remind Governments that
issues in slums need to be given serious attention, and that
leaders should not just look the other way as conditions in
slums continue to deteriorate. People are tired of words, they
want action.”
Moschetti is in charge of the Korogocho
Catholic Church, which is a member of Exodus Kutoka: a network
of 15 Catholic parishes working in different slums in
Nairobi.
Elsewhere, Eldoret will host two major cross country
races this weekend, the Secondary Schools Cross Challenge and
the annual Discovery Cross Country, organisers said
yesterday.
The second edition of the secondary schools
challenge will be held on Saturday while the 15th edition of the
Discovery race is on Sunday.
The schools’ meet, dubbed
“Puma Rift Valley Cross Country Challenge,” will he
held at the Kazi Mingi farm on the course used by the IAAF High
Performance Training Centre athletes, the organiser, Martin
Keino of Keino Sports Marketing, said yesterday.
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26
gennaio 2007
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THE
DAILY NATION
Campaign
by religious leaders the poor
NEWS
Publication Date:
1/18/2007
More than 200 religious leaders have
launched a campaign to make religion meaningful to Africans.
The
campaign was launched simultaneously in Nairobi’s Kibera,
Kangemi and Korogocho slums, where majority of residents live in
poverty.
Local and foreign delegates attending the World
Forum on Theology and Liberation were taken from the
conference’s venue in Karen to the slums.
The
chairperson of the local executive committee, Prof Mary Getui,
said the aim was to get the delegates, who are in the city to
attend next week’s Word Social Forum, engaged at the
grassroots level.
Theory vs practical
“What we are
saying is that we need the theory and we need the practical, we
should not just preach to the people, we should also sort out
their needs, get involved in their concerns and as much as
possible, together, provide solutions,” said Prof Getui,
the dean of the school of humanities and social sciences at
Kenyatta University.
The conference will be closed tomorrow
by Nobel laureate Desmond Tutu.
Impoverished
The
international coordinator of the Justice and Peace Commission,
Sister Maura Browne said: “Looking at the world, the
Gospel and the impoverished people, this is why we are
here.”
The registration of delegates to the World
Social Forum, which was being done at Kenyatta International
Conference Centre, was postponed yesterday due to a technical
hitch.
Engineers from mobile phone service provider Celtel
were unable to install and connect cables for Internet service.
Celtel Kenya is the conference’s official communications
company.
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ARCHIVIO
NOTIZIE 2006
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