New Cluster Platform for developing informal settlements launched in Kisumu, Kenya

The Kisumu Initiative for Sustainable and Liveable Settlements is a new cluster platform which engages communities, public, private, and civil society stakeholders to collaborate on how to turn the biggest challenges within waste management and sanitation into innovative business models. This week 30 local stakeholders took part in our kick-off workshop – the fastest growing city in Africa.

At Quercus Group we have the honour of being one of four founding fathers behind the initiative with @Plan International, @Practical Action and @Slum Dwellers International. Our approach is inclusive from day one. No one should think they can come in and solve any of the many challenges in these areas without engaging the local citizens. The starting point is to truly understand the stakeholder landscape, the existing initiatives, the position and ambition of the city and the county government and the existing ways local communities, entrepreneurs and companies operate today”. 

In Kisumu, we were amazed to see around 30 participants from all layers of the city including the city government, the county government, utility companies and private companies spending a full day on discussing and exchanging ideas on how to make the cluster platform successful and valuable for everybody. This makes us believe that the cluster approach is even more relevant in an informal settlement setting than we even imagined.

Half of the population in Kisumu live in informal settlements and lack access to basic infrastructure and services including water, sanitation, and waste management. Waste collection rates ranges from 20%-25%, with the remaining 75%–80% left accumulating in the backstreets, markets, road sides, drainage trenches and open spaces. However, with 65% of the waste being organic and more than 25% other recyclable, the potential for improvement is significant.

The next step in this long-term engagement is to digest all the inputs and to follow-up individually with each of the participants in order to further narrow in on roles and concrete activities that creates value in Kisumu in terms of job creation, increased sustainability and liveability through new solutions, partnerships and business models,