Building sustainability and resilience in Kenya’s cities and towns

Sustainability of livelihoods, businesses, jobs and cities has become a major talking point in today’s world in which disruption is the norm.

As a result, companies, individuals and policy makers must constantly seek ways to adapt, first to remain profitable and secondly to remain relevant.

In cities like Nairobi, public planning has over the years been marred by a lack of long-term planning, leading to such public infrastructure challenges as the privatisation of public transport, perennial water shortages, power outages and failure to plan roads correctly to take into account the safety of all road users.

For instance, failure to plan roads properly has led to a disproportionate number of pedestrian deaths.

But these pedestrians are not just numbers; they are workers, breadwinners, consumers and an integral part of the city and no less valuable than the motorists for whom highways and bypasses are regularly expanded.

It remains a conundrum that cities like Kisumu, which sit next to a fresh water lake fed by numerous rivers, continues to experience water shortages. How can such challenges be addressed in a region that is no stranger to flooding?

These are some of the questions that the next edition of The Edge, to be published on June 12, will be seeking to answer.

The Business Daily has put together a team of thought leaders, opinion and policy shapers, business actors and journalists to explore ways in which lives, livelihoods, businesses and cities can be made more sustainable and resilient while also raising the quality of life across demographics.

Do not miss your copy on Friday, June 12.