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Feature: Residents in Kenya's largest slum welcome new access road

Xinhua, October 22, 2015 Adjust font size:

Movement in and out of Kenya's largest slum -- Kibera in the capital Nairobi -- has been changed thanks to a 3.5 km tarmac road completed recently.

Bernard Magaka, a resident in Kibera for the past two decades, said the road has brought big changes to the slum.

He said residents before had to walk through narrow tracks which were usually dangerous, but now they have an unimpeded road access.

"Thugs used to mug residents in broad daylight as they could easily hide in the dim light corridors without fear of being caught. The criminal networks knew that the police could not reach the area and thus operated with impunity," Magaka said.

Another resident Joseph Omega also hailed the new road.

"Our pregnant women are now able to access hospitals in good time as ambulances can reach the doorsteps with ease," Omega said.

The construction work was carried out by the National Youth Service (NYS), a leading vocational training institute for underprivileged youth in Kenya.

Chinese construction giant, AVIC International, offered vehicles and engineers for the project.

NYS officer in charge of the Kibera road construction, John Sau, said the new road is of significance to the sprawling Kibera slum in the event of a fire.

"We are now confident that fire engines will be able to save lives as they can now easy navigate inside the slum," he said.

Thirty earth moving equipment and 22 truck tippers purchased from AVIC International were involved in the project.

Sau said the Chinese provided critical support for the project.

"The AVIC technicians were always available whenever we needed expertise to operate the equipment," Sau said.

NYS says it has over the years received financial and technical assistance from the Chinese government.

AVIC Kenya project manager Li Jing said the company is committed to improving life for Kenyans.

"That's why we partnered with the NYS to build the modern road network in Kibera," Li said.

AVIC is working on several infrastructure projects in Kenya including the upgrade of the capital airport. Endit