Nairobi water pipes cut and blocked with sand, NMS chairman says
Short record: the main facts, with sources. A full case file has not been prepared.
Down To Earth reported in 2018 that about 40 percent of Nairobi's water cartels divert pipes rather than own wells, and that water sold in Kibera costs 300 times the piped price. At stake is water access in Nairobi's poorer neighbourhoods, where in 2020 the NMS chairman said pipes to South C had been cut and blocked.
- Water cartels (unnamed) — Sold water from diverted pipes at prices far above piped water Down To Earth
- Water customers in Kibera — Paid 300 times the piped price, per Down To Earth Down To Earth
- Residents of South C — Lost piped supply after pipes were cut and blocked, per the NMS chairman
What happened
Down To Earth reported in 2018 that about 40 percent of Nairobi's water cartels did not own wells and instead diverted pipes.
Down To Earth reported that water sold in Kibera cost 300 times as much as piped water.
The chairman of Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS) announced in September 2020 that pipes to South C had been cut and blocked with sand, and that water was being sold by tanker.
In court and with insurers
Lawsuits and rulings
Insurers
What we don't know
Nature
- Not measured Harm to nature: The record holds no measurement of harm to nature.
Record
- None on record Not reported in the sources reviewed: the number of households affected or the volume of water diverted.
- None on record Not reported in the sources reviewed: whether any cartel member or official was charged.
- Insufficient Reported but not verified: Down To Earth's 2018 headline projected water rationing in Nairobi until 2026.
Did the harm stop?
Not stated in the sources reviewed.
Who paid?
Not stated in the sources reviewed.
Sources
Press and investigations
- Nairobi is likely to continue rationing water till 2026Down To Earth · 2018