Mwiki is a low-income neighbourhood in the counties of

Nairobi Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...

and

Kiambu Kiambu is a town in Kiambu County, Kenya. It is from the national capital, Nairobi. It is the capital of Kiambu County, which bounds the northern border of Nairobi. Other proximate towns are Ruiru, Gatundu, Limuru and Kabete. Administr ...

. It is approximately northeast of the

central business district A central business district (CBD) is the Commerce, commercial and business center of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides wit ...

of Nairobi. Due to its transregional nature, the part of Mwiki that is within Nairobi is referred as Kasarani Mwiki while the other portion domiciled in Kiambu is referred as Githurai Mwiki. The two Mwiki regions are separated by the Gatharaini River (Kasarani River) as it flows downstream in an easterly direction to join the Nairobi River.

Location

Mwiki is located approximately northeast of Nairobi's

. Kasarani Mwiki is straddled by the Kasarani-Mwiki Road, off Thika Road. Githurai-Mwiki is considered part of the larger Githurai 45 area. Electorally, Mwiki is placed under two constituencies: with Githurai Mwiki being under

Ruiru Ruiru is a municipality and sub-county in Kiambu County, Kenya. It sits within the greater Nairobi#Nairobi metropolitan region, Nairobi Metropolitan region. According to the 2019 national population census, Ruiru was the 4th largest urban centr ...

, while Kasarani Mwiki under

Kasarani Kasarani is a mixed-use neighbourhood in northeast Nairobi. Kasarani is also used in reference to the city's second most populated sub-county with the same name, encompasing various neighbourhoods in the northeastern areas of Nairobi. Located ...

. Mwiki also falls into two administrative areas of Nairobi and Kiambu: Kasarani Mwiki in Nairobi's Kasarani Sub-county, while Githurai Mwiki is administratively managed by the Kiambu's Githurai Sub-county.

Overview

Mwiki is popularly known in two ways, depending on location: Githurai Mwiki and Kasarani Mwiki. Githurai Mwiki is generally a high-density housing and

low-income Poverty is a state or condition in which an individual lacks the financial resources and essentials for a basic standard of living. Poverty can have diverse

neighbourhood with closely built structures. Residents especially in Githurai Mwiki struggle with limited or poor

infrastructure Infrastructure is the set of facilities and systems that serve a country, city, or other area, and encompasses the services and facilities necessary for its economy, households and firms to function. Infrastructure is composed of public and pri ...

such as schools, due to the growing population. This led to the government to split Ruiru Sub-county into two: Ruiru and Githurai sub-counties. Mwiki in general has struggled with poor roads, that deem the area inaccessible. Mwiki has in the past also struggled with insecurity. It gained a reputation for being one of the breeding grounds of the

Mungiki Mungiki is a banned ethnic organisation in Kenya. The name (''mũngĩkĩ'', ) means "a united people" or "multitude" in the Kikuyu language. The religion, which apparently originated in the late 1980s, is secretive and bears some similarity to myst ...

sect.

Mwiki wards

Mwiki produces two electoral wards with the same name in the counties of Kiambu and Nairobi City: Mwiki Ward in Kiambu is one of the wards in Ruiru Constituency, while Mwiki Ward in Nairobi is one of the five electoral wards within Kasarani Constituency.

Explanatory notes

References

{{Nairobi, state=collapsed Suburbs of Nairobi Kiambu County