UNDERSTANDING CITY RESILIENCE PRINCIPLES IN THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT: A CASE STUDY OF APPROPRIATE CITY RESILIENCE PRINCIPLES FOR THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT IN THE NAIROBI CITY COUNTY

Nicky Nzioki, Catherine Kariuki, Joseph Ikinya and Magdalene Mwende Kituma

AfRES from African Real Estate Society (AfRES)

Abstract: This paper discusses how application of city resilience principles in the built environment can help to manage future flooding disasters in the urban regions considering the current exponential urbanization in Nairobi City County as well as in the rest of the Forty Six Counties in the Republic of Kenya. The paper recommends integration of city resilience sustainable practices in the Built environment and the responsibilities of different stakeholders towards the realization of the disaster reduction and adoption of appropriate mitigation measures to reduce vulnerability in urban areas. Flooding incidence is not a new phenomenon in Kenya. For many years several regions in Kenya have had flooding accompanied some of devastating mudslides.Flooding in the past mainly occurred in areas neighbouring the riparian land along the banks of major urban rivers as a result of the seasonal overflowing of rivers and siltation.. During the recent rainy seasons of both 2015 and 2016, a new face of flooding has been manifested in areas several kilometers away from the riparian lands. Nairobi City County and its suburbs has been one of the worst hit areas this time round The majority of residents in Nairobi have recently witnessed the wrath of the recent floods either through long hours of traffic jam due to flooded urban roads,, flooding in residential houses, clogged up storm water drains, overflowing sewers, and ultimately loss of life and destruction of the built residential properties in most of the low income residential areas within the Eastland’s Estates of the City. Just like in Noah and the Ark, human beings do not have power to control floods once they occur, but they have the power to manage flooding. Building the Wooden Ark at this era might not be a viable solution .The modern day Ark can however be achieved by understanding and integrating city resilience concept in disaster management.A case study of some of the areas that were recently affected by the devastating flooding will be described in this paper to highlight the extent of the property damage and losses incurred by the various stakeholders, residents and real estate developers in some of the worst areas of the East lands of the City.This paper will conclude with a summary of recommendations of the most appropriate city resilience principles for the built environment in the Nairobi City County.

Keywords: city resilience principles; Disaster Mitigation; disaster preparedness; Disasters; flooding; Risk Assessment; Stakeholders; urban vulnerability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: R3 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016-09-01
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