Gikomba is one of the largest open-air markets in Nairobi, covering 16 acres of land.
It sits on a very prime area for investment (redevelopment) and considering an acre of land in Nairobi Central Business District (CBD) starts at Kshs 35,000,000 per plot (Kshs 280,000,000 per acre), a lot of investors and similar parties have been closely monitoring the Gikomba land.
In this article, I’ll give you a detailed insight into all the fires affecting small business owners at Gikomba since 2009 and the promises that have been made to help them.
Interestingly, almost 42 years after the first-ever fire in the market, Gikomba is still burning.
Key Takeaways
- 10 fires occurred between 1990 and 1995
- 24 fires have occurred between 2009 and 2024
- 6 fire incidents occurred in 2021
- Mitumba (second-hand clothes) stall owners are most affected
- Dispute on ownership of the 16 acres of land where the market sits is suspected to be the biggest cause of fires
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An Overview of the Gikomba Market
It is estimated that there are currently over 65,000 traders in the Gikomba market selling mitumba (second-hand clothes), cereals, doors, furniture, timber, fabrics, shoes, curtains, wall units, etc.
Different sections of the market contain different traders.
However, the overall number of traders has been consistently going up since the 1990s despite the history of mysterious fires that keep damaging millions worth of property.
By now, you may already know that Gikomba gets ravaged by fire almost yearly.
What you may not know is that these Gikomba fires date back as early as the 1980s.
In fact, between 1990 and 1995, Gikomba experienced around 10 fire incidents that almost crippled trading in the market each time they happened.
An even bigger blow to Gikomba traders happened in the year 2000 when a major fire burned in the market for more than 8 hours and was described as the largest the market had ever seen.
Unfortunately, that fire was just an addition to the list of fires that had occurred and a pointer to more that were to come.
A Summary of Gikomba Fire Incidents Since 2009
There were other fire incidents between the years 2000 and 2007 albeit with scanty details.
However, in the post-2009 period, all the way to 2024, fire incidents in Gikomba have been reported with accurate details as in the table below.
Who is Responsible for These Gikomba Fires?
The table above already gives a clue – deliberate arson.
Since the fires started in the 1990s, the same theory of arsonists trying to force traders out of the land occupied by the market keeps popping up.
This theory makes much sense because there is almost no chance that consecutive fire accidents could befall the same market year after year.
Again, the Gikomba land is extremely valuable. At the market price of Kshs. 280m per acre, the total value of the 16-acre market is about Kshs. 4.48 billion.
A clear pattern emerges from the history of the fires since only a few years – 2011, 2013, and 2016 – did the traders take a rest from the damage to property by fire.
The fires are suspected to be caused by developers eyeing the demolition of the Gorofani Estate which would be redeveloped under the Nairobi Integrated Urban Development Master Plan (NIUPLAN).
Also, the recent fires (2020 and 2021) have been blamed on an eviction notice given by Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS) for the expansion of the Pumwani Majengo Health Facility.
List of Political Promises Made to Resolve the Gikomba Fires
The Kenyan government has promised to take action a few times while the police have always promised to investigate after each fire.
After the recent fire in 2020, Interior Principal Secretary Dr. Karanja Kibicho blamed private developers for causing the traders’ woes – the land is seen as prime and good for real estate expansion.
Previously in 2019, the then-Nairobi governor Mike Sonko promised to investigate and expose all those behind the fire incidents at Gikomba.
Before that, in 2017, President Uhuru Kenyatta had ordered investigations and prosecution of those responsible for the fires. Surprisingly, no arrests or convictions have ever been made.
During the 2022 election campaigns, Governor Sakaja promised to set up a fire department in the market and said the fires were a result of a land dispute.
Also in the same election period, President Ruto gave a promise to traders that he would declare the 16 acres as public land to solve the situation permanently.
