Race Against the Rains: Green Army Clears Thousands of Waste Loads as City Hall Braces for El Niño

Daily garbage collection has tripled from approximately 1,000 tonnes to 3,000 tonnes since the operation escalated, with the county targeting all 17 sub-counties in a coordinated pre-emptive strike against flooding.

The Scale of the Challenge

Nairobi's vulnerability to flooding is not a new phenomenon. Decades of unregulated dumping, encroachment on river corridors, and inadequate waste management infrastructure have effectively sealed the city's natural drainage arteries, turning what should be seasonal rains into annual disasters. The county's environment sector has mapped 80 specific disaster hotspots across the metropolis, deploying resources to the most critical blockages ahead of the October El Niño forecast.

The stakes are high. East Africa's largest metropolis has historically suffered severe disruptions when heavy rains hit, with flooded roads paralyzing transport, businesses shutting down, and residents in informal settlements facing displacement and property damage. This year, City Hall is determined to break the cycle of reactive emergency rescues by adopting a prevention-first approach.

The Green Army in Action

At the heart of Nairobi's flood preparedness strategy is the newly formed "Green Army," a workforce integrated with the national Climate WorX initiative to overhaul the city's sanitation grid. The operation utilizes the Climate WorX Mtaani programme, which recently inducted 25,000 youths into a green workforce tasked with daily street sweeping, drainage clearing, and vegetation control. This approach not only addresses the city's waste management crisis but also tackles high youth unemployment rates in targeted informal settlements.

County Executive Committee Member for Green Nairobi, Maureen Njeri, has been at the forefront of coordinating these efforts. Speaking during an operational review, Njeri emphasized that the campaign represents a fundamental shift in how Nairobi approaches waste management, from episodic, short-term cleanups to a daily maintenance schedule enforced by sub-county administrators.

"As we prepare Nairobi for the El Niño rains, the Green Army is on the ground every day clearing drains, removing waste and keeping our roads and neighbourhoods clean," Njeri stated. "This is about prevention, ensuring water has a clear path to flow and reducing the risk of flooding."

Clearance Figures: The Numbers Tell the Story

The scale of the operation is reflected in the clearance figures shared by Njeri's office. Since the citywide clean-up campaign began in April 2026, more than 40 major waste collection points and illegal dumping sites have been cleared across the county.

In Embakasi South alone, more than 4,500 loads of waste have been collected since April. Kware Bridge accounts for 1,538 of those loads, while another 2,970 loads have been cleared from the English Press facility in Mukuru Kwa Reuben. At Kware Bridge, excavators have been pulling mangled masses of plastic bags and silt from the dark waters of the Nairobi River, with municipal crews working around the clock to restore natural river flow.

Along the Nairobi River in Kamukunji Sub-County, 216 loads have been lifted from Motherland in Eastleigh South Ward, with approximately eight loads remaining as of late August. An additional 20 loads have been cleared at Kinyago Slums in California Ward.

In Ruaka Sub-County, crews have removed 10 loads from Gumba Bridge in Babadogo Ward, 27 loads from Kingston in Utalii Ward, and 64 loads from Area 3 Sokoni in Mathare North. Another 54 loads have been cleared from Korogocho Market.

Weekly Programme and Target Areas

The county's weekly programme, running from August 31 to September 6, 2026, is targeting major roads, markets, waste collection points, and public spaces across multiple sub-counties including Starehe, Kamukunji, Mathare, Kasarani, Langata, Dagoretti South, Ruaraka, Embakasi West, Embakasi Central, and Makadara.

Markets and roads receiving attention include Gikomba, Muthurwa, Wakulima, Korogocho, Kangemi, and Toi. Simultaneously, drainage maintenance, desilting, litter collection, and vegetation control are being undertaken in Dandora, Ruai, Langata, Mathare, Kibra, and Dagoretti North.

In Parklands, the latest exercise brought together assistant directors, sub-county and ward environment officers, and the Parklands Association to clear garbage, silt, and other obstructions from drainage systems, waterways, and river channels. Njeri noted that the county has also been servicing waste collection points along the Ngong River to prevent garbage from choking waterways, particularly as the rainy season approaches.

Multi-Agency Collaboration and Community Participation

The campaign is bringing together county departments, community organisations, businesses, and residents in a coordinated effort. In Mukuru Kwa Reuben, Green Army teams have worked alongside Public Health and Environment officers, area administrators, Climate Works, Akiba Mashinani Trust, and community groups to clear illegal dumps and drainage channels while sensitising residents on proper waste management.

However, county officials acknowledge that sustained public participation will be critical in protecting the gains made through the clean-up campaign. "We cannot achieve a clean and flood-resilient Nairobi through the efforts of the County Government alone," Njeri said. "We need residents, communities and businesses to take responsibility for their waste and stop illegal dumping."

Broader Reforms in Waste Management

The current interventions form part of wider reforms in Nairobi's solid waste management system. These include the recruitment of 4,000 Green Army workers on permanent and pensionable terms, a significant upgrade from the casual employment that has historically characterized municipal cleaning operations. The county also has plans to establish material recovery and waste transfer facilities across the city, which would improve waste sorting, recycling, and disposal efficiency.

The financial commitment behind these efforts is substantial. Reports indicate that Nairobi has accelerated a KES 1 billion ($6.6 million) flood defense investment as part of this aggressive citywide drainage clean-up. This funding supports equipment deployment, personnel wages, and the logistical infrastructure needed to sustain daily operations across all 17 sub-counties.

The El Niño Context

Meteorological models have forecast severe El Niño rains for October 2026, prompting the pre-emptive strike. El Niño weather patterns typically bring above-average rainfall to East Africa, often resulting in flooding, landslides, and infrastructure damage if drainage systems are not adequately prepared.

Governor Johnson Sakaja had earlier convened a multi-agency team and established five sub-committees to coordinate the city's preparedness for the expected El Niño rains, with KSh 2.4 billion in drainage and flood-mitigation works getting underway across flood-prone areas. The multi-agency team identified 227 flood hotspots across Nairobi's 17 sub-counties, which guide preparedness, resource deployment, and emergency interventions. Priority areas include blocked or undersized drainage channels, areas requiring desilting and waste removal, river corridors and other waterways at risk of obstruction, flood-prone roads, and critical transport links.

Looking Ahead

With the October rains approaching, the county is banking on increased garbage collection, drainage clearance, community mobilisation, and early intervention to make Nairobi cleaner, safer, and more resilient to flooding. The strategy represents a notable departure from previous years, when the county typically responded to flooding after disasters had already occurred.

Whether this prevention-first approach will be sufficient to protect Nairobi from the worst impacts of El Niño remains to be seen. However, the sheer volume of waste already removed, thousands of truckloads from dozens of chokepoints, suggests that City Hall is taking the threat seriously. The success of the campaign will ultimately depend on sustained political will, continued community participation, and the county's ability to institutionalize these gains beyond the immediate El Niño season.

For now, the Green Army continues its daily work across Nairobi's neighborhoods, clearing drains, removing waste, and keeping roads and neighbourhoods clean, one truckload at a time.