By eryon180
In the last week and a half, we visited a few of the many slums in Nairobi. Slums are informal settlements and often are comprised of shacks and makeshift homes. These areas are located close to the industrial district as well as the wealthier areas. In Nairobi, there are many slums but the largest are Korogocho, Kawangware, Mathare and Kibera. A few hundred thousand people reside in these areas and work as service workers or house-help, as well as laborers. Most people here also live under 100K shillings which equates to less than $1.00. On top of these issues, there is no waste management so trash and waste are scattered everywhere and the local water sources are highly contaminated.
Despite this, since visiting the slums I have found that most of the people are highly optimistic and are looking for ways to improve their situations. I also learned that many kids in this area attend both public or private school, some people have large TVs (I passed a hut in Mathare that had a flat-screen TV) and many people sell goods ranging from vegetables to refrigerated Coca-Cola. It’s a very weird juxtaposition as well because for most of the slum areas are directly next to the wealthier areas.
This week we went to MYSA which is the Mathare Youth Sports Association which is a youth program that first began as a soccer program for youth but has expanded to an arts program, photography, has three libraries, girls peer educator program and HIV/AIDS counseling program. They also have over 1800 soccer teams each with 10-20 kids. MYSA serves as both an after-school program but also a huge slum-wide community development program and everyone in the area is pretty much involved. They also do garbage clean-up in order to improve their community. We also visited WFAK which is Women Fighting AIDS in Kenya. This organization is Kenyan-run and they provide counseling to HIV + and AIDS patients as well as sexual health training. My group also brought food to two bed-ridden AIDS patients in the slums and we were able to ask them questions in Swahili in order to understand their situation and feelings. It was really moving and went right to my heart.
When we first visited Mathare I was a little nervous because this was my first time in such an environment and it definitely is a shock. Slums are nothing like back in the US and no amount of preparation helped with taking in the reality. That being said though, if you ever go remember that no matter what you should be respectful and to considerate to the people in that community. Visiting the AIDS patients though was difficult for me because I felt very helpless and that I could not doing anything to improve the lady’s situation. Hearing her thoughts though really inspired me to want to do something and gave me strength to get through anything.
Finally, at the end of the week I went with another student to Kibera, which is known worldwide as the second largest slum in Africa. We visited two MSF health clinics and were able to talk to kids living in the area. As we walked though, we could hear a chorus of “How are you?” from all the children we passed. Since English is the second language, most of the kids only knew “How are you” and “I’m fine”. They would also follow us until we responded! Many people also referred to us as “mzungu” which means white or open. At orientation we learned that this isn’t an insult but a way to address non-Kenyan people. Most people thought we were aid workers too and were really open as well to talking. I learned a lot about the Kibera residents and the area that I couldn’t learn from watching movies or seeing pictures. I suggest that if you are in an area with slums, that with trusted people and during the day, that you check it out and be open to what you experience. It is also a location I am considering for my research given the lack of resources, difficulties with access to justice and issues with urbanization. Visiting the slums was very moving and definitely will stick with me forever.
