Putting local communities at the center of public space making in informal settlements

The Kounkuey Design Initiative a not-for-profit design and community development organization active in Kibera and Mukuru, two large informal settlements in Nairobi, since 2006. The organization collaborates with community-based groups to co-create public spaces that support everyday needs related to sanitation, childcare, play and recreation, mobility, socializing, safety, income generation and food security.

This initiative, also known as the Kibera Public Space Project (KPSP) is ongoing and consists of 11 unique public spaces.The eleven public space projects, some include transforming busy, polluted areas along the flood-prone riverside into safe and productive spaces. The fourth public space KPSP was developed in partnership with three community groups: Slumcare, The New Ndovu Women Group and Usalama Bridge Youth Reform group. Here KDI transformed a flood-prone and polluted space along a frequently used settlement route into a safe and resilient public space comprising a childcare collective, common sanitation facilities, a pedestrian bridge and a play space. Retaining walls protect the space from floods, and local children use the space for play, learning and other activities. The youth group have an office space from which they operate a local taxi service, while the women’s group operates the childcare collective.

Local wisdom, partnership and ownership are seen as vital for co-creating and co-developing public spaces. Their model of practice follows the pattern ‘ask, listen, collaborate, and repeat’ to intimately understand the needs of local communities and ensure these are integral to processes and solutions.In each project, community members, including children and youth, are consulted in needs assessment, co-design and building phases. Methods such as drawing, modeling, and ‘Building with Bricks’ similar to Legos are employed to involve children and to understand their needs, priorities and ideas for change. They then incorporate these ideas into public space solutions.

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