Sakaja teams up with residents’ associations as Nairobi maps 227 flood hotspots ahead of El Niño rains

Governor Johnson Sakaja said residents’ associations would be integrated into the County’s preparedness efforts to help disseminate early warnings, mobilise communities and support emergency response in flood-prone areas.

Speaking during a meeting with the KARA Governing Council led by CEO Henry Ochieng at City Hall on Wednesday, Sakaja said the collaboration would strengthen the link between the County’s multi-agency response teams and communities.

“We need the residents’ associations to be able to address the El Niño intervention works being undertaken fully and with impact, including the measures we have taken so far, from communicating emergency numbers and the role of residents to urging those in riparian areas to move to safer areas,” Sakaja said.

The County has mapped 227 potential flood hotspots across Nairobi ahead of the October–December rains, with the data expected to guide drainage, mitigation and emergency response measures.

Under the new coordination framework, the County will share the hotspot map and associated risk information with residents’ association coordinators and train them on hazard recognition and evacuation procedures.

KARA will, in turn, mobilise residents in flood-risk areas, relay early warnings to households, organise community clean-ups and drainage-clearing activities, identify vulnerable households and report emerging risks to the County.

The residents’ umbrella body will also provide a coordinated channel for incident reporting and participate in a post-rainy-season review with the County.

Ochieng said the partnership would help residents understand the actions required before and during the rains.

“Early warnings being given are very important. We are also going to communicate what each household needs to do and participate in cleaning where they need to,” he said.

He added that KARA would engage communities in different neighbourhoods to identify and address specific flood-related challenges.

“We shall also communicate to the residents that we shall have meetings with various communities so that we all come together and help address the needs of each place,” Ochieng said.

The County will also designate a Disaster Management focal point to coordinate the collaboration and align its drainage and evacuation plans with neighbourhood-level mobilisation.

Sakaja further urged residents to dispose of waste properly and report blocked drainage systems and other areas requiring intervention to enable response teams to act promptly.

He also reiterated calls for residents living in high-risk riparian areas to move to safer locations before flooding occurs.

According to the Governor, some residents have already started relocating voluntarily after understanding the purpose of the evacuation exercise.

“The agenda is to make sure that people don’t lose lives when we can avoid it,” Sakaja said.

The County has been carrying out drainage clearance, desilting and other flood-mitigation works while directing multi-agency teams to prioritise the identified hotspots.

The enhanced partnership with KARA is expected to run throughout the rainy season, with residents’ associations playing a key role in household sensitisation, community mobilisation, early-warning dissemination, incident reporting and coordination with evacuation centres.