Welcome to Kibera. The largest slum in Africa. Where no rain floods the streets, but garbage. Where it was endless metal and mud shacks yet in the distance you could see the buildings of the city. The trash…I couldn’t get over the trash. I mean garbage on the street is always common in Africa, but this was different. There was no sign of vegetation except near the railroad tracks that ran through the area, which was a good ten feet below the pathways. And even then, trash was being dug into the side of the ditch because there was no other place to put it. It was heartbreaking to see such poverty in such a westernized and developed city as Nairobi. One and a half million people living in a two square mile area. All living on less than a dollar a day. The government has tried to help solve this problem of poverty in Nairobi, but it just led to more corruption. You see, the government decided it wanted to get as many people out of there by supplying these free apartments. But instead of the locals actually moving into them, they decided to rent them out and earn a profit while remaining in Kibera, totally defeating the purpose. It’s like the locals are proud to be living in Kibera; they’re basically famous and they don’t want to give up their recognition. There’s even designated tours so people from around the world can see just how bad it is, which boosts the pride of the residents even more. So all in all, this area needs a lot of help. God has really been burdening this small area on my heart. So many volunteers go in and out of Kibera, yet there’s so much to be done still. But I feel like God really has a purpose for Kibera. I know that one day, Kibera will be a place not of pride and corruption, but of humility and love. Change and breakthrough are about to happen in this place, I can feel it.
