Three settlements in Kisii County are set to benefit from the second phase of the Kenya Informal Settlements Improvement Project (KISIP2).
The project funded by the International Development Association (IDA) seeks to improve access to basic services and land tenure security for residents in participating urban informal settlements. This will be done through survey, planning and issuance of title.
A team from KISIP is already working with the County Project Coordination Team to form settlement executive and grievance redress committees at Marani, Keumbu and Daraja Mbili areas.
The Settlement Executive Committee will be responsible for community mobilization, awareness creation and ensuring community participation on project activities. The Grievance Redress Committee, on the other hand, will receive and register grievances, investigate and give solutions.
“We are glad that Kisii County has been on-boarded onto the KISIP2 project. Once we form the committees in the participating settlements, our experts will lead the planning and survey exercise to allow for land registration and regularization of tenure. Infrastructure development will follow,” said Gladys Juma, Head of Gender and Community Engagement.
She noted that the programme was designed to promote socio-economic planning and inclusion by encouraging the community to have economic activities within their settlements for growth.
CEC for Lands and Urban Development Grace Nyarang’o welcomed the KISIP team to Kisii County and pledged full support to help realize the set objectives.
“Our technical team from the County is ready to work with you to ensure we deliver on what we have promised our people in the participating settlements. We look forward to well planned settlements with better services including drainage, paved roads and street lighting,” said Nyarang’o.
Under the project, the experts will carry out physical planning, cadastral survey and detailed topographical survey of the informal settlements.
The County Project Coordination Team is headed by the Director in charge of Housing, Joel Ombati, with membership drawn from various County Government departments.
Keumbu, Marani and Daraja Mbili are among 29 participating informal settlements across six counties, which are Laikipia, Embu, Kisii, Nakuru and Nandi.