Highway engineering and land use change in peri-urban Nairobi: Assessing inclusive development outcomes for host communities in the Northern Bypass corridor

High land values and accessibility

The major implication of the construction of the bypass is increased accessibility with resultant advantages including high land values and land use change. One can argue that if the highway did not create accessibility, then the land use and the land values would not have changed. Increased accessibility has led to cheap transport, short time from one destination to another, faster movement and interconnectivity. Before the construction of the bypass, residents used to spend 5 h to go to certain destinations which has drastically reduced to a 30 min’ drive. The fare to certain destinations has also reduced from Kshs 200 (2 US Dollars) to Kshs 50 (0.5 US Dollars). One farmer said, “Some people have really benefitted. They were in the middle of nowhere and all of a sudden they are in the middle of developments.” Increased accessibility has created employment opportunities and increased incomes. The bypass has improved linkages with other land uses and networked the area to other places enabling the population residing here to easily move to work in neighboring towns of Nairobi, Thika and Kiambu. The accessibility has opened up a market for land and residential demand. Before the bypass, there was no market for rentals for residential and business activities.

Increased accessibility has led to increased demand for land in this area and since the land supply is fixed, the land values have shot up. In some clusters, the land values have shot up to as high as 1000%. The main driving force of the land values in the study area is land use change. Land prices do not only reflect the uses of land but also the potential uses of such land. In a competitive market, the price of land will be equal to the discounted sum of expected net returns obtained by allocating the land to its most profitable use. That use may change over time if, for example, agricultural production is currently the most profitable use. But development for some other purpose is expected to yield even greater net returns in the future.

While the Bypass road development influenced the initial property value trends along the corridors, the dynamics that followed have been over taken by the market forces. The result of all these processes is a conversion of land from low value per acre crops such as coffee to high value per unit of land activities such as residential use for renting which has been the main trend. Another result of these changes has been large scale speculation in land, with consequent high costs to the actual settler. This leads to large areas being priced out of any potential market, except that of urban use.

While high land values are good, they have indirectly contributed to negative externalities to the indigenous communities who have not been able to take advantage of the new opportunities offered by the highway and the high land values. These externalities include land use change and livelihood change as discussed below.

Land use change and loss of livelihoods

The high land values have led to land use conversion from agriculture land use to commercial/residential. Data from the household analysis and the land use aerial images indicate that agricultural land is converting to residential/commercial use at a very rapid rate. This has very serious implications both for the community at local and national level due to food security and environmental degradation.

The reasons given for conversion are that farming is very challenging. Before construction of the bypass, there was plenty of land for grazing cows, sheep and goats which would move freely in the ranges. Cattle feed was also available from neighbors at a low cost. But this is no longer available as the land has been taken up by settlements and the remaining vacant sites are farmed intensively by the owners forcing the farmers to enclose their animals. Renting land for farming is also expensive. This necessitates the farmer to buy fodder for his animals as his land is not enough to graze thereby increasing his production costs and reducing profits. This is compounded by lack of labor as the farming community consists of the elderly. All the young men who used to be farm laborers have moved to the booming construction industry where the pay is higher. Thuo, (2013) notes that an increase in rural non-farm job opportunities in peri-urban areas creates opportunities for “decent income.” The changing character of the area to an urban set up is providing many employment opportunities unlike the agriculture setup whose jobs are considered more inferior and thus less competitive.

Asked how they sustain themselves since they were relying on agricultural activities, the respondents gave various responses. One of the interviewed farmer sold part of his land, bought land in a different part of the country which is semi-arid and relocated his family. He was left in Nairobi where he constructed residential units (1 room) with the remaining money on the remaining portion. Others have resulted to selling some portion of land and surviving on that money or sell off entire portions and relocate to other areas where land is cheap. There is also diversification into zero grazing, poultry keeping and pig rearing which require less space and meet demands of an emerging market. But the production costs in zero grazing are very high and the returns are low. Prior to construction of the bypass, residents relied on crop growing, livestock keeping and sales as well as formal employment. Presently, residents have taken to informal businesses and casual laboring as the main livelihoods.

The implication of some decisions is far reaching. For the families selling land like the farmer who relocated his family to Laikipia and was left alone, this decision led to family unit separation as this old man who is 82 years old has been left alone in Nairobi and the family has moved to an area with more land. The others relocating as a whole family are moving to areas where they are foreigners leaving everything behind and going to start afresh. The ones who are selling the land and spending the money on other things are ending up losing everything and becoming destitute. This trend was also observed by Thuo (2013) who concludes that “other people are not culturally, socially and economically prepared in re investing the sale proceeds and thus they end up wasting all the money.” Likewise, Kasanga and Kotey (2001) observe that land tenure in the peri-urban areas in the long run is moving from cropping arrangement to rental thus contributing to insecurity which leads to reduced investment incentives.

Loss of agriculture activity has an implication on food security as articulated by policymakers mainly the planners and agriculture officers who highlight this as the major threat facing not only this area but the country in general with Kiambu being the most affected by upcoming developments and bypasses passing through the area and encroaching into the rich agricultural lands.

The farmers are aware of the consequences of not engaging in agriculture activities and cited food insecurity (69%), hunger (44%), high cost of living (39%), lack of income (35%), overdependence on others (54%), unemployment 52 (24%) and poverty (31%). Food insecurity (69%) and hunger (44%) which are related are already a major concern in the area. As one respondent said “people are hungry.” High cost of living can be attributed to the residents not farming, the supply of food production goes down and the demand goes up, the food prices go up and this affects the cost of everything. The farmers also used to produce animal feed from their own land or buy cheaply from neighbors but this is no longer the case. Lack of income and unemployment are also a very serious consequence more so for those who are losing the rural/agricultural livelihoods and are not able to take advantage of the emerging opportunities in other sectors and they end up in poverty. Poverty is a direct consequence of food insecurity, high cost of living and lack of income which leads to overdependence on others. From this observation, it is clear that the loss of farming for this community is major cause of poverty as all these consequences lead to poverty.

The community is concerned that the foods they used to enjoy are not available or is expensive. Most cited is lack of vegetables, arrowroots and milk. The available vegetables and arrowroots are mostly grown in sewage areas. Food safety was also highly guaranteed as they were grown in a rural environment. They are not sure of the source of their food. As one lady who lives there said, “we could not eat vegetables sourced outside our homes or a neighbor’s home as we considered it highly contaminated. But now we have no choice but to go to the market to get the contaminated one”.

The loss of the agriculture activity which was the main source of livelihood is a major blow to the economy of this corridor as the farmers have not been able to diversify may be due to their age and lack of resources.

Accessibility, loss of income for the indigenous population and increased inequality

The Northern Bypass has created accessibility opening up the area to many opportunities, contributed to income dynamics and displacement of the indigenous population. Increased accessibility has created employment opportunities and increased incomes. The bypass has improved linkages with other land uses and networked the area to other places enabling the population residing here to easily move to work in neighboring towns. The accessibility has opened up a market for land and residential demand. Before the bypass, there was no market for rentals for residential and business activities.

In terms of income interpreted as increased business opportunities or creation of employment opportunities, 108 out of 160 (68%) respondent tenants and 107 out of 220 (48%) farmers’ respondents said the bypass had increased employment/business opportunities. This observation is because it shows that the original land owners are not really seeing the business/employment opportunities the bypass has created as opposed to the tenants who are benefitting and are the newcomers who moved in here because of these new opportunities.

This brings in the aspect of displacement of the local population. The high incomes being enjoyed as a result of the increased developments are not by the locals. A small area near the bypass with a mix of high rise buildings in the middle of original old temporary structures revealed that out of the 10 high rise buildings in the area, none of them belongs to the original owners. They were bought off and relocated to the interior where the land is cheap. An estate agent in the area confirmed that the plots he is selling are being bought by “outsiders” who are coming and demolishing the old houses and constructing high rise flats. Some are having arrangements with the owners who subdivide the ¼ acre and are left with just a small parcel for their houses mainly 40 ft by 20 ft where the house stands. But they eventually sell off even that parcel. One of the opinion leaders interviewed said that “I know we are visitors here” implying that very soon they (locals) will all be gone.

The above scenario has contributed to increased inequality where the newcomers who are buying land in the area have more resources than the local population who are not able to compete. The new opportunities presented by the bypass are being exploited by the newcomers increasing the gap between the rich and the poor in the area which was not the case before the bypass as all the locals were more or less at the same level of resources.

Accessibility is a blessing in most cases but in some cases, poor accessibility may actually benefit and protect businesses in weaker regions. Better transport connections opens local markets to the increased competition of larger businesses outside the regions that produce a greater variety of products at lower prices. Deike (2000) notes that this reduces the regional monopoly power of existing businesses. Local farmers complained that they are facing stiff competition from farmers in the larger region, for example, Murang’a, Laikipia who are able to supply cheaper milk, eggs and other farm produce to Nairobi due to ease of accessibility. Production costs in the rural areas are lower because of cheap labor and availability of cheap feeds making the production cost low as opposed to peri-urban communities practicing zero grazing at high production costs. When accessibility is improved, the transport cost goes down and the rural farmer or middlemen are able to explore a wider market.

The peri-urban farmer who has a small land size, limited pasture land and high labor costs is disadvantaged. As Deike, (2000) notes, the region as a whole is negatively affected by the local non-competitive businesses that struggle and begin to fail. In this case, the farming occupation begins to struggle and eventually fails.

Opening up the region to intra-regional competition requires some local sectors to be strong enough to survive the competition. There should be a plan to either change the land use or protect the existing regional economics. The land use studies recommended that this area be preserved as agricultural due to its significance to the national economy and the regions’ employment creation. (Nairobi Urban Study Group, 1973).

The household survey analysis reported that 49% of the farmer’s population have recorded reduced incomes as a result of the bypass. These are the farmers who were mainly dependent on agriculture activity for their livelihood but do not practice it anymore due to reduced land sizes. Others are experiencing business disadvantage especially those depending on the local market because it is easier to supply the goods in this area from afar where the production costs are lower and therefore sell cheaper because the transport costs are very minimal.

Increased population, increased demand and high cost of living

When asked how the Bypass has affected the area 72 out of the 220 (32%) farmers interviewed said it has increased the population in the area and 99 out of the 160 (62%) tenants interviewed said it has caused population influx. This population influx may not necessarily cause displacement as the indigenous owners had various portions of land but the population has provided a very large market for land as they come in and settle in the portions that were initially meant for farming.

There is an influx of population into the area as a result of very many factors namely accessibility thereby opening up the area and attracting people who would otherwise have not heard of the area or the area was not attractive but is now attractive, business opportunities in the rapidly developing area and booming construction industry for residential uses thus attracting labor. The highest population movement is into the upcoming urban centers and expanding informal settlements along the bypass. The other factor attracting the increased incoming population is the sale of the land that the farmers were using for farming and the subdivision of the former one acre share to 1/8 acre portions. The people migrating to this place are mostly in lower middle income and are of middle ages (30–55 years old).

The increasing population has come with many challenges for the indigenous population. The main challenge is increased demand for everything in the area leading to increased prices. The cost of living has gone up in the area. This can be attributed to various factors. First is the change in land use from agriculture to residential/commercial use. This means reduced food production, reduced food supply, increased demand and increased food prices. Second is the transformation from a rural setup to an urban set up where everything is bought as opposed to the period before the bypass when there were many farmers and food supply especially milk and vegetables was high. The high land values have contributed to the increased rents. Rents consume a substantial amount of every household’s income and this has translated to a high cost of living. The tenants have registered a higher response (91) in this aspect as opposed to the farmers (88) because they pay rent and depend on buying for everything as opposed to the farmers who live in their homes, have kitchen gardens and some have a cow providing milk so everything is not for sale cushioning them against the high cost of living. The high rents can also be attributed to the increased population creating a high demand for housing.

An emerging issue of debts was not openly discussed in the household questionnaire but it was implied. When the farmers who have constructed rental houses were asked the source of money for construction, they indicated sale of land and borrowing from banks or cooperative societies. This has introduced the issue of debts which they never had before because they were comfortable with farming and no need to borrow. This is not necessarily a bad thing but in cases where the interest rates are high or the money is mismanaged and they do not complete the construction, or the construction is completed but the return is not high enough to service the loan, then the farmers will end up losing everything to the bank. They will also be servicing the loans for a long time. Debts are also a reflection of the changing culture in the area as the rural community is generally very cautious with borrowing especially where land is concerned as opposed to the urban community which is not afraid of debts.

Sengupta, et al. (2007) in their study in India concluded that in developing economies such as rural India, a huge public investment project on the development of road infrastructure is not only beneficial to the larger national economy but may as well help in minimizing poverty in rural areas and civilizing the socio-economic welfare of the local population residing in the roads environs. However, in the study area this has not happened. Poverty at the local level has been created by displacements, sale of land and squandering of the proceeds, high land values making land purchase out of reach of the majority, high rents and high living cost. The transformation process of the area from rural to an urban set up is contributing to the poverty for the indigenous population who were used to a rural setup where everything was cheap and available as opposed to the current situation where resources are scarce. The fact that poor (farmers) have fewest of the livelihood assets needed to cope with these changes make them vulnerable.

Construction of the bypass has led to shortage of fuel wood which is a basic necessity for the majority of the farming community. Most of the farmers were dependent on firewood from the coffee plantations and trees in the area or charcoal. But the coffee plantations are not there anymore and they have resulted to buying charcoal, paraffin for stoves or gas. These are very expensive options for some who do not even have a source of income.

This increased population was not planned for as the area has changed use informally with no land use plan which would guide the developments. Increased population brings with it environmental challenges into areas that were initially near natural. Among the key one include waste generation, wastewater discharge, air pollutants and elevated noise pollution. No provisions on social amenities were factored to match the roads and the associated social and economic developments taking place.

There is emergence of accidents. Before the construction of the bypass, there were no accidents as there was no road to cross or cars to collide on the road. The accidents have come with the bypass and they are many and serious. Various factors can explain these accidents. These include the design of the road which passes through populated areas with no consideration to safety issues for the road users, inadequate road signage and safety provisions (footbridges, pedestrian crossings, footpaths and speed control bumps) at high population sections of the road bypass posing significant danger to the safety of road users and increased vehicle movement. When the road was envisaged in 1973, it did not take into consideration this huge population and was constructed to handle light traffic. The bypass divided the area into two with members of the same community living on different sides of the road but the need for daily interaction is still there so they keep on criss-crossing the road at all times. The road users are also to blame as they do not respect the Zebra crossing and cross at any point. There is also encroachment of business activities on the road junctions which have become undesignated urban centers. Hawkers target the motorists because traffic is slow as a result of the rumble strips and bumps erected to slow down traffic in the busy center. The hawkers are sometimes knocked down as they compete and chase motorists to purchase their goods oblivious of the moving vehicles.

Perhaps the original concept of the bypass design did not anticipate an influx of residents and institutions. Now that it has happened, necessary safety provisions should be integrated such as to include service roads, pedestrian crossings zebra crossings and footbridges, footpaths and cycle lands, additional bus bays as well as enhanced signage and safety information.