Statement by Resilience Action Network Africa on Flooding and Urban Resilience in Kenya and Beyond

Statement by Resilience Action Network Africa on Flooding and Urban Resilience

Resilience Action Network Africa expresses concern over the loss of life and destruction of property across Nairobi and other parts of Kenya following recent floods. These incidents  are not simply the result of heavy rains. They reveal long standing failures and system flaws in urban planning, drainage infrastructure and emergency preparedness that have left communities dangerously exposed to predictable impacts of the changing climate.

Seasonal rainfall is not an unforeseen event. And yet, year after year, blocked drainage systems, overwhelmed stormwater channels and delayed emergency response continue to put lives at risk. Kenya, like many countries, has made significant advances in climate monitoring, weather forecasting, and disaster risk assessment systems. However, early warning information too often fails to translate into timely early action.

It is evident that when governments fail to anticipate and manage foreseeable risks, the people who pay the ultimate price are often those with the least capacity to respond. True societal resilience cannot be built on neglected infrastructure, weak preparedness systems and reactive policies.

Flood disasters are rarely acts of nature alone. They are a reflection of choices and decisions on land use, infrastructure access and whose safety receives priority. Where drainage systems fail and sanitation, clean water, and health services remain limited, floods quickly trigger public health crises which expose communities to disease, injury, displacement, and loss of livelihoods.

Nairobi’s crisis carries the weight of history. Colonial land arrangements, political patronage, and the pressures of a deeply unequal economy explain why 70 percent of the city’s residents occupy just 5 percent of its land. The rule of planners, lawyers and architects has too often produced exclusion rather than safety. Today, roughly half of Nairobi’s informal settlements sit on private land that was once public, 40 percent on riparian reserves, and only 10 percent on uncontested public land.

What these events demand is not sympathy alone. These realities call for structural reforms in how risk is planned for, and managed. Urban resilience requires coordinated governance which aligns climate risk management, urban planning, environmental protection, public health, and disaster response.

The Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness, Response, Recovery (PPPRR) model offers a useful template: proactive investment in prevention and preparedness, rather than expensive recovery after lives have already been lost.

Resilience Action Network Africa therefore calls for urgent action anchored on six  priorities:

1.⁠ ⁠Predictive Risk Planning

National and county governments should institutionalize the use of predictive climate and flood-risk modeling to guide urban planning, drainage management, and emergency preparedness. Early warning systems must be systematically linked to early action protocols, ensuring that alerts trigger preventive measures such as drainage clearance, infrastructure protection, community alerts, and evacuation planning.

2.⁠ ⁠Drainage and Urban Infrastructure Investment

Routine maintenance of drainage systems, strict enforcement of building regulations in flood-prone areas, and the restoration of natural drainage ecosystems must be treated as core public investments, and not bureaucratic afterthoughts. River basin management and stormwater infrastructure require upgrading and consistent maintenance.

3.⁠ ⁠Strengthened Emergency Response Systems

The government must build integrated emergency management capabilities which include; coordinated rescue services, real-time alerts and safe evacuation protocols. Clear coordination between emergency services, local authorities, community structures, and humanitarian actors is key during extreme weather events.  

4. Community-Centered Resilience and Risk Awareness

Communities are not merely victims of disasters. They are frontline actors in resilience. Local preparedness initiatives, community-led risk mapping, and access to information are key for faster response during emergencies. Resilience must be built around communities’ fundamental rights to health, safe water and sanitation, adequate housing, and a healthy environment. These are not secondary development outcomes. They are foundational.

5. Whole-of-Society Accountability for Risk Governance

Resilience requires transparent governance and shared responsibility across governments, urban planners, private developers, environmental regulators, and citizens. Urban planning regulations, environmental protections, and infrastructure require consistent enforcement. Resilience investments require transparent tracking to ensure resources reach communities most exposed to climate risks.

6. Embrace Co-joined Urbanism in Planning

Urban planning must move away from the displacement logic that has defined much of Africa’s city growth. City authorities need to create genuine spatial flexibility, allowing the urban poor to participate in the production of their own habitats, to co-design productive spaces, and to have their layered land claims and rights formally recognised. This requires serious land reform that corrects skewed urban land distribution and tenure arrangements, and balances dignity with adequacy.

 A warning for the continent

Nairobi’s experience signals a wider challenge for cities across Africa. Extreme weather combined with rapid urbanization will continue to test urban systems. Communities that have contributed the least to global climate change face the greatest exposure to its consequences. Therefore, building resilience requires sustained investments in preparedness and resilient infrastructure.

Resilience Action Network Africa is ready to work with policymakers, researchers, and communities across the continent to advance the policy, legislative, and infrastructural reforms needed to strengthen Africa’s resilience in the face of growing climate and urban pressures.

The moment calls not only for solidarity with those affected, but for the decisive, systemic action that makes such tragedies far less likely in the future.

Signed by;

1. Resilience Action Network Africa
2. Stop TB Partnership Kenya
3. People’s Health Movement-Kenya 
4. Kenya Female Advisory Organization 
5. Kuza Trust
6. Ujamaa Center
7. Economic Social and Cultural Rights Network
8. Social Justice Center
9. SDG2 Advocacy Hub Secretariat