Ruto Comes To Aid Of Kenyan Cities After Sakaja Complains

President William Ruto has directed the Ministry of Lands and the Ministry of Treasury to come up with a framework which will ensure the inclusion of Kenyan cities in the urban development programme.

The Head of State was presiding over the launch of the Urban Support Programme at the State House in Nairobi when he issued the directive to the ministries under Cabinet Secretaries Alice Wahome and Njuguna Ndung'u respectively.

“I have asked the Ministry of Lands Urban and the Ministry of Treasury to sit together and develop a frame that will give us the resources, working with other partners to assist us manage the big cities and urban areas so that Sakaja doesn’t have to complain that they are left out of this program,” Ruto directed.

Ruto made the intervention following complaints raised by Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja that the urban development programme was giving a pedestal to development in rural and arid areas, and leaving out cities.

Sakaja lamented that the population of Nairobi City was stretched beyond what it could handle, thus needing assistance from the national government to help in decongesting it.

“Those in informal settlement suffer much more, as we always say Nairobi is a hard place to stay if you don’t have resources you will have nowhere to stay, you will have nothing to eat, and there is no community.

"We really want to ask that you support and come up with a new programme for the cities,” Sakaja stated.

Ruto in response to Sakaja's complaint stated that the national government had come up with the National Urban Development Fund to anchor the urban development agenda sustainably.

The President assured that the major cities would also be considered since they bring Kenyans from different walks together.

"We will go out of our way to assist you and ensure this programme is implemented in an accountable manner so that the people of Kenya get value," the Head of State reiterated.

Further, President Ruto committed to ensuring that Kenyans were out of informal settlements. 60 per cent of people living in urban areas are confined to informal settlements.

According to him, climate change will continue to pose mounting challenges to the country's development and serious threats to human health and safety, especially in urban areas.

"We have close to 7 million people in Kenya living in informal settlements, and they deserve our attention. The ongoing flooding due to high rainfall underscores the urgent need for us to address this issue with very particular and specific attention," he continued.

President William Ruto speaking at State House, Nairobi during the launch of the Kenya Urban Support Programme II on May 7, 2024. /PCS