At the mention of the word Eastleigh, many remember the businesses run in this neighbourhood. There is a stall for everything, from household to hardware items. This area has continued to develop through the years. Its existence today is due to the fight of one Kenyan community against racial segregation.
Establishment of Nairobi
The establishment of Nairobi happened in 1899 as the railway headquarters of the East Africa Protectorate. The early days of Nairobi were difficult; malaria ravaged the population and there were constant disease outbreaks due to poor sanitation. The absence of sewage systems meant that there was a constant water shortage and no proper garbage disposal. To try and solve these problems, the administration requested William Simpson, a British professor, to visit the Nairobi, examine the sanitary conditions, and advise the government about public sanitary policy. Publishing of the report happened in 1914.
According to the Simpson Report, the diseases plaguing Nairobi were not caused by improper sanitation, rather by the intermingling of Europeans with Africans and Asians who were potential disease carriers. Therefore, the only way to solve Nairobi’s sanitation problems was through residential and commercial racial segregation. The report recommended this as the general policy regarding Nairobi town planning. This conclusion created an opportunity for the colonial government to institutionalize racism by fortifying the notion that there were races that were inherently unhygienic.
Fighting Systemic Injustices
Re-zoning of Nairobi began after publishing of the Simpson Report. Somalis were some of the African settlers in Nairobi, having moved here to work as railway builders and guards. Somali villages that had been established within projected European leasehold areas were marked for demolition under the pretext of health reasons. These villages were in areas such as Kileleshwa and Parklands. The administration settled them in Ngara Plains under temporary occupation license as they searched for a permanent home for them. In 1916, Mbagathi became the location chosen to host Somalis.
Not long afterwards, the Somali community, under the leadership of their headmen, contested this order. They cited the utter impossibility to carry on business in Nairobi’s CBD while living many kilometres away. The administration agreed to let them live closer to Nairobi on the condition that they purchased their own plots and built their own houses. Many Somalis acquired plots in an area located near Ngara Plains called Nairobi East Township. The key selling point of this township was its closer proximity to the CBD than Mbagathi.
Loophole for the Win
In keeping with the segregation policy, the administration had sanctioned the sale of land in Nairobi East Township to Asians only. However, the law was yet to be changed to reflect this sanction. There were no restrictions as to the race or class of population allowed to reside in Nairobi East Township. Because of this, the Somali could buy plots without contravening any regulations. This caused Nairobi East Township to have a mixed-race population, as other Africans moved to the area in subsequent years. In 1921, Nairobi East Township merged with a nearby estate called Egerton to become Eastleigh Township.
Eastleigh Airport
On 1st August 1940, the Royal Air Force (RAF) opened an airfield in Eastleigh for operation during World War II. There was a similarly named airport in England, located in the town that Eastleigh was named after. Eastleigh Airport was the main air force station in East Africa, but it also served as a civilian airport from 1945 to 1958.
Over time, the administration wished to increase the size of the airport so as to service more airlines. But these plans fell apart due to the high elevation of the area and short runways which could not be extended because of its close location to the city. This led to the construction of present-day Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Embakasi. At the height of Mau Mau guerrilla warfare in the 1950s, the use of military bombers from Eastleigh Airbase during air raids on forests was prevalent. The Eastleigh Airport took on the name Moi Air Base in the 1980s.
Eastleigh or Isilii?
To date, Eastleigh boasts of a large Somali population. For some, the spelling of the name is not Eastleigh, but rather Isilii, an alteration sourced from the local pronunciation of the word. Eastleigh locals are business savvy, evident from the booming biashara in the area. There is an appreciation for Somali culture, thanks to the number of restaurants that specialize in this community’s cuisine.
Eastleigh residents, share the stories of your childhoods with us! Can you really shop for anything and everything in this neighbourhood?
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