Inclusive Nairobi: Institutionalising Refugee Inclusion in Nairobi
Nairobi City County Government (NCCG)
Mayor
Arthur Johnson Sakaja
Start of Project
12/01/2023
End of Project
Ongoing
Overview
When the Nairobi City County Government (NCCG) pledged in 2023 to institutionalise refugee inclusion within local governance, it set in motion a process that led to the adoption of the Nairobi County Refugee Integration and Community Building Strategy (NCRIS) in 2025—making Nairobi the first county in Kenya to formalise this commitment.
Doing so, it committed to delivering a new portfolio of policies and programs dedicated to institutionalizing the socio-economic inclusion of Nairobi’s refugees within NCCG’s city planning, service delivery, and policymaking.
The NCCG sought to institutionalize refugee access to city services and infrastructure by 2027, establishing a section for refugees within an NCCG sub-sector responsible for developing policies and practices that promote refugee socio-economic inclusion. These policies were to include facilitating access to healthcare, trading and business licenses, education, and other essential services. The section was also to be responsible for direct service delivery to refugee communities, related to job training, access to County family and social welfare programs, psychosocial support, youth empowerment, and employment and self-employment. The NCCG sought to involve refugee communities in the design of these policies and programs.
To align these policies and programs with the Nairobi context, NCCG also sought to create a city-wide coordination mechanism by 2025. This mechanism would allow NCCG to coordinate directly with existing INGOs and NGOs to facilitate data sharing, referrals, and program complementarity. NCCG planned to conduct its own baseline study of refugees in Nairobi to complement the existing database and define its role within ongoing urban displacement responses.
Expected Impact
The permanent institutionalization of refugee inclusion within county government plans, policies, and programs, towards enabling refugees’ access to social services, healthcare, education, and registration services.
Creating a mandate for the NCCG to design and deliver its own refugee-focused programs through county government mechanisms.
This commitment follows the national government and international community’s efforts to move away from an encampment policy in Kenya towards a national policy that recognizes urban refugees and empowers local governments to engage and provide for them as constituents.
Reported Impact [as of November 2025]
Through cross-departmental coordination, participatory forums, and reforms such as enabling refugees to obtain business permits and access digital skills training, the County has advanced inclusive urban governance. With over 1,400 officers trained in refugee law and an estimated 100,000 refugees expected to benefit, Nairobi demonstrates how devolution can drive sustainable urban solutions when inclusion is embedded in city management.
Despite ongoing funding and coordination challenges, the County’s experience highlights the potential of locally led governance to deliver lasting inclusion.
Priority Objectives
Improving migration governance and forced displacement protection
Protecting those most vulnerable
Realising socio-economic inclusion
“As one of the economic capitals of Africa, the climate crisis has brought new challenges to the residents of Nairobi, especially our most vulnerable residents, including migrant and displaced communities. But our government is stepping up, backed by the Global Cities Fund for Migrants and Refugees, to improve the livelihoods of our residents through inclusive access to business development and civic activism opportunities that will create green jobs, clean our waterways, and give all the opportunity to enjoy Nairobi’s economic growth.”