Nairobi is set to join New York, London and other cities around the world that are divided into administrative units known as boroughs after the County Executive approved plans to divide the city into six administrative units at a cost of Sh400 million.
A borough is a small administrative unit within a local government whose main purpose is to decentralise local government services.
The county will be divided into six boroughs namely Central, Southern, South Eastern, Eastern, Western and Northern.
The criteria used to create the boroughs according to the county is the clustering of each of the 17 sub-counties in such a way that each borough covers at least three of them.
According to the Nairobi County government's Acting Chief Officer for Boroughs and Sub-County Administration, Lydia Mathia, each of the boroughs will be headed by a borough manager who will coordinate at least three sub-counties.
"The borough system means a cascading delivery of services to Nairobi residents. Some of the services such as garbage collection, toilet flushing and road repairs will now move from City Hall to the six boroughs. It is easier to pool resources in the six units for easier deployment," Ms Mathia told Nation.Africa.
The county government has allocated Sh400 million in the 2023/2024 financial year budget for construction and infrastructure to support the establishment of the boroughs.
Ms Mathia also explained that the new administrative units will be run using the specific budget allocations for the sectors.
"There will be no additional cost to the taxpayer other than the recruitment of the borough managers. The budget and staff we will use to run these units will come from the relevant sector. They will be moved from City Hall to the borough headquarters. We want the borough managers to have the authority and autonomy to make decisions to improve service delivery," she added.
City residents will also no longer have to travel to the City Hall Annex to access services. They will be required to visit the relevant borough headquarters.
Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja's cabinet on Wednesday set the ball rolling for the establishment of the administrative units after his cabinet approved plans to begin construction of the units' headquarters following a public participation exercise. A dispatch from Acting County Secretary Patrick Analo said the units are expected to improve service delivery.
"The Sakaja administration is determined to resolve the perennial service delivery challenges in Nairobi City County. In particular, it takes an inordinate amount of time to respond to issues. The administration therefore intends to decentralise the county public service through the creation of administrative boroughs." Mr Analo said.
The Central Borough will cover parts of Nairobi Central Business District, including Starehe, Kamkunji and Mathare sub-counties. Its headquarters, according to the county government, will be in Kamkunji on one of the plots of land where the county is expected to undertake a low-cost housing project.
Western Borough is expected to cover Westlands, Dagoretti North and Dagoretti South. Its headquarters will be in Waruku or Kawangware. Their service centre will be at City Park.
Residents of Embakasi will have to seek county services from the Eastern Borough, which will be based at the DCC compound in Embakasi Central. The service centre will be located at the Embakasi North HDD offices. The borough covers the Embakasi Central, Embakasi West and Embakasi North sub-counties.
Those living in Kasarani, Roysambu and Ruaraka sub-counties will seek services from the Northern Borough headquarters at Gatharaini Grounds, while those living in Embakasi South, Embakasi East and Makadara sub-counties will seek services from the South Eastern Borough headquarters in Makadara.
Southern Borough includes Kibra and Lang'ata sub-counties. It is headquartered at the Joseph Kang'ethe Social Hall in Kibra sub-county.
But Professor Fred Ogola, a governance analyst, says the county's directive to create boroughs when sub-counties already exist is a sign that the county government is not prioritising key issues affecting Nairobi residents.
"What the county government is doing is just copy-pasting what we have seen in New York and London without taking into account the priority issues for Nairobi residents. Residents need an improvement in garbage collection. They do not need boroughs. What is the essence of having boroughs when we have sub-counties? How much will it cost the taxpayer?" Prof Ogola asked.
But according to Leonard Khafafa, a political analyst, the county's decision to establish boroughs was long overdue and a step in the right direction as Nairobi expands at a faster rate.
"Nairobi is a metropolis and as you know, all metropolises around the world are governed by boroughs. Nairobi is expanding at a fast pace. If you look at places like Mlolongo, Kitengela and Ngong and compare them to what they were 10 years ago, you will see the difference and the urgency. We do not need to wait for 20 years to establish the boroughs, the time is now because they make it easier to govern the city," Mr Khafafa told Nation.Africa.
