As UN looks to Kenya, could new global hub deepen inequality in Nairobi?

Al Jazeera

17 hours ago

Nairobi, Kenya – In the shadow of gleaming glass towers in the upmarket neighbourhood of Gigiri – where manicured lawns meet the edge of Karura Forest and United Nations staff in air-conditioned vehicles glide past security checkpoints – lies a different reality just minutes away.
In the cramped alleyways of Githogoro slum, just 2km (about a mile) from where Kenya's capital, Nairobi, may soon host more UN offices and staff, Agnes Karimi cuts meat on a wooden table under the scorching sun, watching her stock spoil in the heat because she has no electricity to power a refrigerator.
While the UN complex boasts state-of-the-art conference facilities and reliable power, Karimi's meat spoils daily in her small butchery.
The contrast could not be starker as Kenya readies for what local officials herald as a historic transformation.
By 2026, major UN agencies including UNICEF, UNFPA, and UN Women may relocate their headquarters from high-cost Western cities to Nairobi, part of the UN80 reform agenda to decentralise operations to more cost-effective regions.
For Nairobi – a bustling metropolis of 5 million people – the move promises to cement its status as one of four global UN hubs alongside New York, Geneva, and Vienna.
'Kenya will be leveraging on the UN's existing presence in the country and the opportunities presented by its operations in the greater horn, east and central Africa sub-regions,' Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi was quoted as saying in February, even though the UN said this month that the relocation decision has not been finalised.
For Ambassador Ababu Namwamba, Kenya's permanent representative to the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), Nairobi boasts 'impressive capabilities' as a logistical and financial hub. 'As a key multilateral diplomatic hub and the environmental capital of the world, Nairobi has consistently provided top-tier services at third-tier cost,' he told Al Jazeera.
For Nairobians, the proposed move has prompted a complex mix of hope, scepticism, and fear about who will actually benefit from this global spotlight.
The city already grapples with a severe housing crisis that has left thousands living in informal settlements without basic services. With average monthly salaries hovering around $590-$640 for most Kenyans, the influx of an estimated 2,000 well-paid international staff by the end of 2026, earning substantially more, threatens to exacerbate existing inequalities in a city where nearly 60 percent of people live in informal settlements, covering just 5 percent of the land area.
'We do not have electricity here. My meat goes bad fast,' 36-year-old Karimi, who is a mother of four, said at her butchery, swatting flies in the humid air of Githogoro.
Her struggles mirror those of thousands of informal business owners across Nairobi's sprawling slums, where access to electricity reaches only 23 percent of households, according to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS).
Nairobi's 'Beverly Hills' gearing up
In Nairobi's upscale neighbourhoods, transformations are already visible.
In Runda, Muthaiga, and Kitisuru – areas often dubbed the 'Beverly Hills of Nairobi' – tree-lined streets and gated communities are preparing for an influx of international staff. This includes fast-tracking construction of upscale housing units, as well as expanding restaurants, long-stay hotels and international school campuses.
These leafy enclaves, where swimming pools glisten behind high walls and gardeners tend to manicured lawns, represent the Nairobi that most UN staff will call home.
Meanwhile, the city's housing market is also anticipating a shift.
According to Joachim Ombui, chairman of the Landlords and Tenants Association of Kenya, the UN's settlement in Nairobi is predicted to yield a 10 to 11 percent increase for long-term rentals.
'This is an international advantage for businesses and socioeconomic integration, positioning Nairobi as a global hub for investment, peace integration for African states, and a strategic location for tourism and business,' he told Al Jazeera.
Ombui predicts a 10-15 percent rental price rise by 2026, 'as developers target UN staff with gated communities'.
'We're seeing a shift toward mixed-use developments in areas like Westlands, Kilimani, and Upper Hill, incorporating residential, commercial, and recreational spaces with sustainable, eco-friendly designs,' he told Al Jazeera. But he added that 'rising lease costs and rents, which could double, are a concern', saying that his association would petition authorities to implement rent control measures.
The property market has already been experiencing changes, observers note.
In Ruaka, a growing middle class residential hub near the UN headquarters, journalist Rwamba Njagi notes that some housing rentals that used to cost around $155 per month last year have now soared to over $380. This is being fuelled by improved infrastructure and the area's close proximity to key offices and amenities. For the last three years, Njagi said property costs have been rising rapidly in this district as investors and developers who recognised the untapped potential moved in. 'The majority of locals who inherited land sold to investors and left to become watchmen and caretakers,' she said.
These price increases are occurring in a city where rental costs already consume 40 to 60 percent of middle-class incomes, according to local real estate reports. With average one-bedroom apartments in decent neighbourhoods costing $200-400 monthly – equivalent to an entire month's salary for many Kenyans – the prospect of further increases due to international demand has sparked genuine anxiety.
John Mwati, executive director of the Transcending Africa Leadership Foundation and an economist, sees both opportunity and risk in the expansion.
'The UN moving its operations to Nairobi is a big deal for us. It could have a profoundly positive impact on Kenya's economic landscape, bringing more jobs and spending in sectors like real estate, hospitality, and services,' he explained.
However, Mwati warns that 'smart government action is needed: Investing in affordable housing, regulating runaway property prices, and making sure the economic gains are felt across the board.'
Repeated attempts by Al Jazeera to contact the government spokesperson Isaac Mwaura, the Principal Secretary for Labour and Skills Development Shadrack Mwadime, and the Head of Presidential Special Projects and Creative Economy Coordination Dennis Itumbi, were unanswered.
Mixed feelings
The UN General Assembly (UNGA) has already approved two construction projects at the UN Office at Nairobi (UNON) to the amount of nearly $340m, the largest investment the UN Secretariat has undertaken in Africa since its inception, besides peacekeeping.
These enhancements could potentially allow Nairobi to host UNGA meetings – a diplomatic coup that would further cement Kenya's role as what officials call the 'multilateral capital of the Global South'.
The Kenyan capital has long served as a UN hub. Since 1972, it has seen the number of UN staff it hosts surge from 300 to 6,500, along with their 11,000 family members and dependents.
There are now 83 UN offices, the majority of which are in Gigiri. Yet, despite this strong UN presence, infrastructural upgrades have remained limited to specific parts of the capital.
For 33-year-old Simon Awene, a father of two, any optimism about the proposed UN expansion has been exhausted by years of unfulfilled promises.
'The only time anyone helps us is when they are pushing for their agendas,' he said, lamenting that the improved services, education and work opportunities he expected have not materialised.
However, according to Ambassador Ababu, Kenya 'is ready for more of the world'.
He told Al Jazeera that 'elaborate plans have been implemented to ease logistics, including expansion of all access roads leading towards the UN, modernisation of the airport, sea and dryland ports in Mombasa, Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and Naivasha.'
John Njuguna, a 24-year-old motorbike taxi driver, represents a younger generation cautiously hopeful about new opportunities. His clients are mostly casual labourers, and he believes an increase in international staff will create a ripple effect of employment.
'I have hopes of earning more with the coming of more foreigners because that will translate to more casual labourers working and commuting daily,' Njuguna said, revving his motorcycle at a busy Gigiri junction where matatus (shared taxis) jostle for passengers alongside diplomatic vehicles.
However, Cledwyn Mamai, an events coordinator who resides near the affluent Runda area, suggests the effect of the changes may be limited to established wealthy neighbourhoods where 'a large proportion of residents own their homes.'
Despite more international money coming in to Nairobi, he feels that those Kenyans with property available for leasing may be 'sceptical of the hikes in rents' because they doubt the middle-class Kenyan renters they serve will be able to afford them.
Mamai notes that in districts like Githogoro, where residents like Karimi have watched international prosperity flourish next door while their basic needs remain unmet, a different effect will be felt.
'The expansion feels like another reminder of their exclusion from Kenya's growth story,' he warned.
For Karimi, working in her small butchery in Githogoro, news of the proposed UN changes had not reached her. But when she was told, she became instantly hopeful that perhaps it could bring some relief.
'I only wish that the UN community could help us get electricity,' she said, dreaming of better days. 'I could buy a refrigerator to add to my stock and ensure I have fresh meat and food for my clients.'
This piece was published in collaboration with Egab.