NAIROBI, June 2019 – Representatives from Kenya’s three largest cities, Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu discussed experiences and challenges around urban planning including promoting Non-Motorized Transport (NMT) and developing communities around public transport.

The Forum, on emerging urban issues and city development plans, was organized by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and UN-Habitat.

UN-Habitat discussed efforts to enhance the urban planning capacity of Kenya’s counties while JICA showcased global examples of its support to other cities. The cities themselves highlighted the on-going efforts to implement their development plans.

The Kenyan officials highlighted several challenges to moving forward on Non-Motorized Transport (NMT) as well as Transit-Orientated Development (TOD) which involves concentrating jobs, housing and services close to public transport. These challenges included inadequate public participation and awareness on city plans, inefficient coordination of implementation activities, revenue generation and insufficient planning and design capacity.

Participants agreed the forum was useful to exchange knowledge and going forward would allow cities, government and development partners to design programmes which address common challenges facing the cities.

Banner photo:

Commuters using non-motorized forms of transport in the city of Mombasa, Kenya [Shutterstock/Fotogrin]