Kibera Laini Saba Slum is on Fire
In : KISCOP News
Watch out here for Kibera News
A
fierce inferno has consumed the larger part of Kibera Slums Laini Saba
destroying homes displacing thousands of people and also destroying properties
worth hundred thousand. Many families will begin spending their nights in the
cold. The most group that have been affected are children who went to school
hoping to come back home only to find ruins. They are also the ones who will
suffer the brunt of cold nights beginning today. As an organization working in
Kibera slums we appeal for your generous support. Please contact us if you
have a blanket, Clothes, food stuffs and any other necessary material for the
affected families. You can also donate money if you are far. Let us share with
these brothers and sisters in their time of need.
In : KISCOP News
| Kibera Slum Community Outreach Program |
| Nairobi |
Kibera slum is located in Nairobi, Kenya. It is the largest and the poorest African slum with a population of around one million covering about some 250 hectares of land.The name “Kibera” is derived from kibra, a Nubian word meaning “forest” or “jungle.”
The slum originated in 1918 as a Nubian soldiers’ settlement in a forest outside Nairobi, with plots allotted to soldiers as a reward for service in the First World War and earlier wars. For some reason, though, the British never gave the Nubians the title deeds to their new land. The soldiers built homes, and set up businesses. But they were squatters - with no legal rights.
After Kenyan independence in 1963, however, various forms of housing were made illegal by the government, rendering Kibera unauthorized on the basis of land tenure. Essentially, since the early 1970s landlords have rented out their property to a significantly greater number of tenants than legality permits. Since the tenants, who are extremely poor, are unable to obtain or rent land that is “legal” according to the Kenyan government, the slum-dwellers find the rates offered to be comparatively affordable. The number of residents in Kibera has increased accordingly despite its unauthorized nature.