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Table 4-24 – Markets, Trade and Services Action Plan
Table 4-24 – Markets, Trade and Services Action Plan
Economic ambitions
› Enhanced market infrastructure and improved public realm to support sector development › Improved access to focused business support, with opportunities to benefit from key economic development projects › Inclusion of SIGs, particularly youth, women and PWD
Actions
4.4.1 Soft initiatives, training and capacity-building
A12: Introduce and promote community-led initiatives
A13: Enhance regulation, enforcement and monitoring of the local markets
A14: Establish an Entrepreneurship Centre to support local entrepreneurs in benefiting from the region’s flagship economic development projects
A15: Develop affordable housing to support economic development and social inclusion
4.4.2 VC opportunity: Solid waste management
4.4.3 Anchor projects
Project 8: Wote Jua-Kali Market Improvement
Project 9: Kaiti River Park
Project 10: Bus Park Relocation & Rationalisation
4.4.4. Climate resilient infrastructure projects
Project 11: Urban Centre Transport Network Improvements and Management
Project 12: Street-lighting
Project 13: Accessible Public Toilet Blocks
This section outlines the soft initiatives, training and capacity building interventions proposed to enhance the competitiveness and resilience of the sector, improve inclusion of excluded groups and establish Wote as a trade and services hub for the County. Ultimately, the aim of these initiatives is to position the sector so that it can maximise the potential benefits of the recommended climate resilient infrastructure projects (Section 4.4.4) and the proposed anchor projects (Section 4.4.3), as well as the identified VC opportunity of solid waste management (Section 4.4.2). While not a definitive roadmap, the initiatives are presented in a logical sequence for implementation, starting with actions that can be introduced immediately and following through to longer-term interventions.
The trade and services industry is an inherently complex sector, involving various stakeholders and key players in delivering services, with an extensive reach in terms of the impact it has on local communities. The Sector Action Plan for the agriculture and livestock sector (Section 4.2) encourages local farmers in Wote to form cooperatives. This is also recommended for Wote’s markets, trade and services sector, in order to include members of businesses, organisations and individuals operating within the Municipality. Cooperatives will enable businesses and individuals to pool together their finances and assets to invest together in focused interventions with direct benefits for Wote’s local community, as well as to develop a network of national and international partners to provide a marketing platform.
Community-led cooperatives will provide local people and businesses with the opportunity to influence and become involved with developing the sector they operate within.
This will enhance the potential to create an environmentally sensitive and locally controlled markets, trade and services sector, which develops business and employment opportunities for local communities, and ensures money remains within the local economy. Crucially, given the voluntary and open membership of cooperatives, they can be crucial in improving social and economic inclusion of marginalised and vulnerable populations, including ensuring relevant SIGs organisations are involved in informed decision-making.
Cooperatives can also play an important role in promoting sustainable and fair business practices in trade and global supply chains, including in safeguarding human rights and promoting transparency in the lower tiers of supply chains where informality and decent work deficits are prominent. Such groups would be well-placed to bridge the interests of different stakeholders along value chains to ensure good practices, for instance with regards to labour rights protection, gender equity and youth empowerment.
In order to strengthen cooperative development, an enabling regulatory environment is needed with rules and regulations that allow for efficient registration of cooperatives. The ILO has developed guidelines for cooperative legislation and supported over 110 governments in adjusting and implementing their regulatory frameworks for cooperatives (see footnotes36 37). In addition, sharing information about the cooperative model and its values and principles can help improve understanding on cooperatives, gain recognition in markets, draw interest from consumers and receive support from buyers in the supply chains.
36 ILO, Guidelines for Cooperative Legislation, 3rd Revised Edition (2012) Available at: www.ilo. org/empent/Publications/WCMS_195533/lang--en/index.htm (Accessed: 23/03/2022) 37 ILO, Promoting Cooperatives: An Information Guide to ILO Recommendation No.193 (2014) Available at: www.ilo.org/empent/Publications/WCMS_311447/lang--en/index.htm (Accessed: 23/03/2022) A13: Enhance regulation, enforcement and monitoring of the local markets
During the business consultation process in Wote, traders operating at the Municipality’s various markets reported issues of competition with unregistered roadside traders and street hawkers working in and around the markets. These unregistered traders have a reduced business cost, as they do not have to pay for business licenses or market fees, and thus can usually sell the same products as registered vendors for a lower price. Street hawkers also often set up unregistered stalls on pedestrian walkways and roadsides, making the market and its surrounding area less accessible and attractive to customers.
Monitoring and enforcement of the existing restrictions on street trading should be enforced more strictly to prevent these negative impacts. However, street hawking and unregistered roadside traders are currently a culturally accepted activity in Wote and part of life in urban centres, which may pose difficulties when trying to enhance regulation and enforcement of the local markets. Moreover, women and other vulnerable groups usually constitute the majority of these informal workers. Consequently, provisions could be made to integrate hawkers in official market areas, in order for them to not lose their income stream and livelihoods. For instance, this could involve offering support for the costs associated with formalisation processes and actively including them in improvements to the markets.
A Market Task Team should be considered to define measures to tackle the issues facing Wote’s markets – including infrastructure challenges, accessibility issues, unregistered traders and waste management. For instance, market days involve a high concentration of traders and residents in one place, which presents an opportunity to implement financial incentives or penalties associated with waste management.
Furthermore, the Task Team could coordinate community engagement activities to gauge the required improvements to existing market infrastructure and the wider public realm. A consultation period should be considered to understand both registered and unregistered traders’ views regarding market fees and the acceptable amount individuals are willing to pay for the improved provision of stalls, lighting, storage and other facilities.
If fees become too high, traders may be discouraged from utilising the market, making improvements to market infrastructure unviable and increasing the number of street hawkers.
Qualitative research in Wote has demonstrated that the Municipality has a dynamic and tech-savvy youth population, supported by various polytechnics and tertiary institutions. However, the GeSI study undertaken for the Diagnostics Report (Appendix A) identified that Wote’s youth often do not have access to employment opportunities since qualification levels or requirements in terms of years of experience are disproportionately high. Moreover, employers require certificates of good conduct, which are costly to obtain. Despite this, there is a lack of initiatives to support individuals in developing their own businesses including aspects such as marketing, product design, accounting and e-commerce opportunities.
Consequently, there is scope for the development of an Entrepreneurship Centre for start-ups and small businesses in Wote, offering support to students, graduates and local entrepreneurs. Support could include technical assistance, business advice, access to investors and provision of a collaborative workspace. The Entrepreneurship Centre should be closely linked with local educational institutions and training facilities, in order to facilitate knowledge sharing between entrepreneurs and academics, as well as collaboration with students in various disciplines such as marketing, computer science or engineering. In addition to benefiting businesses, this will also provide students with real-life experience and a chance to apply their knowledge in their chosen field.
Several entrepreneurship and business support networks are currently operating across Africa which may be able to offer provide resources or support to the Entrepreneurship Centre, for instance the African Incubator Network, 2Scale or the International Labour Office’s community-based enterprise development (C-BED) programme (see case study 4-18). The Kenyan Department of Micro and Small Industries (MSI), part of the Ministry of Industrialization, also implements incubation programmes through partner support.
The Entrepreneurship Centre should also develop low-cost and accessible opportunities for out-of-school youth and populations with low literacy levels. For example, business and marketing training should be available to support those who already own businesses, and those who would like to start one.
The wider region surrounding Wote Municipality is set to host a significant pipeline of economic development and major infrastructure projects, which will provide considerable employment opportunities for the local population in future. This includes Konza Technopolis in Machakos County, a key flagship project of Kenya’s Vision 2030 development portfolio, as well as the proposed role of Emali as a major national logistics centre. The economic driver of the Konza smart city is envisioned as a sustainable, world-class technology hub with clusters of innovative ICT, engineering and life science activities – including an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs. Consequently, appropriate and tailored training programmes should be offered within Wote Municipality to best position the local population, particularly the youth, to benefit from these flagship projects. For instance, with regards to the employment opportunities offered by Konza Technopolis, provision of training should focus on upskilling in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and core business skills such as communication and teamwork. The potential for these career opportunities should be promoted to the local population to encourage them to engage in training programmes that may improve their employment prospects.
This offer would complement the training to be provided at the Climate Smart Aggregation Centres (Section 4.2.1) and the joined-up education strategy (Action A8) that focuses specifically on upskilling related to agri-processing skills and sustainable farming practices. As with these initiatives, low-cost and accessible training options should be developed for out-of-school youth, women and PWDs with low literacy levels, including active communication of business development and education opportunities in the local media and education centres. Case Study 4-18: C-BED Programme, International Labour Office38
Currently operating in 14 countries worldwide, C-BED is an International Labour Office (ILO) initiative developed to reach aspiring entrepreneurs and small business owners in underserved vulnerable communities, providing training programmes to support individuals in starting or improving their own business for enhanced livelihoods. The programme consists of two core C-BED training packages, C-BED for Aspiring Entrepreneurs and C-BED for Small Business Operators, as well as other modules on related topics.
The key aspect of C-BED is that training can be carried out without external trainers or resources, and it has been designed to be used by marginalised and vulnerable communities. Only a facilitator is required, and participants work together in small groups to solve problems and share existing knowledge and experiences. Participants are able to support each other in understanding formal business concepts, like costing or marketing, and develop stronger skills for business improvement. The programme is therefore action-based and combines local insights with analysis. All C-BED resources are free to access via ILO’s website.
38 International Labour Organisation, Community-Based Enterprise Development (C-BED) Available at: https://learninghub.ilo.org/program/Community-Based_Enterprise_ Development_C-BED#:~:text=Community-Based%20Enterprise%20Development%20 %28C-BED%29%20Building%20on%20the%20knowledge,marketing%2C%20and%20develop%20stronger%20skills%20for%20business%20improvement. (Accessed: 14/02/2022).
There are no official estimates of the housing shortage in Wote or Makueni as a whole. However, assuming an annual growth rate of 5% in Wote, there could then be a need for approximately 250 new homes per year in addition to homes required to meet the backlog in housing. While these are simple estimates, they indicate the scale of the housing issue. The pursuance of an effective and coherent housing programme, including affordable housing, at both County and Municipality scales is therefore an urgent necessity.
Discussions with the County and Municipal stakeholders confirmed their intentions to address these issues through various approaches both at public and private sectors levels, along with a combination of both through PPP initiatives. For example, they are currently identifying potential parcels of County government owned land suitable for housing development (land banking) as well as engaging with private developers to initiate housing developments thereon.
Furthermore, the existing but stalled, partially complete housing development known as the Wote Housing Scheme that started in 1980’s is being assessed through Central and County government with a view to rejuvenating the development to provide up to 203 units. The units comprise 1 maisonette, 10 units for senior departmental heads, 30 units for managers and 162 for low level staff. So far about 40 units for the senior staff have been retrofitted and functional but 162 have been abandoned, vandalised and in complete disrepair.
The Municipality is well-suited for housing development, as a growing urban area and the County headquarters, it has experienced significant population influx since the start of devolution in 2013. Many people come to Wote to work, do business or look for employment opportunities and consequently there is a strong demand for housing. As it is, a number of high-income groups within Wote use Machakos as a dormitory town and commute daily due to the inadequate supply of appropriate housing in Wote. Wote is very strategically located, it offers residents access to a range of amenities and services – including healthcare, education, public administration, and strong market centres – and a strategic location for accessing other areas of Makueni County and beyond. This makes Wote an attractive place to live, which will be further enhanced by the proposed anchor projects of River Kaiti Linear Park and the bus park upgrade (Section 4.4.3), as well as through providing a range of housing options for all members of society.
The enhanced provision of accessible climate resilient infrastructure, including affordable housing, will not only ensure retention of the local labour force but will attract other economically active people that will drive economic development within the town. Given the projected population growth and increasing urbanisation in Wote, as well as nearby major infrastructure projects like the aforementioned Konza Technopolis and the Thwake Dam, pressure on housing provision is likely to further increase in the short term. However, at present, uncontrolled development has led to the inappropriate and uneconomical use of land, rising land prices, areas that are underserved by utilities and increasing informal settlements. Furthermore, it has been noted that a lack of affordable housing for students continues to constrain the potential of Makueni’s and Wote’s educational facilities, with an increased need for student accommodation within the County and in close proximity to its educational institutions.
Development of an affordable housing programme, which is integrated within a broader housing development strategy, is therefore key in ensuring Wote’s future role as the main activity hub for the County. It should be considered in order to respond to growing demand and to target those individuals most in need of economical housing options, including:
Public and Civil servants – as aforementioned many County and Municipal officials currently live outside of Wote, and even the County, due to a shortage of housing options within the Municipality. This needs to be rectified to reduce commuting time, costs and environmental impacts, as well increase economic activity with the town – the 24hour economy. Housing for students – students typically experience difficulties accessing the housing market, with specific needs for individual rooms and temporary accommodation on a rental basis. Students from various institutions in Wote have reported having to live in inadequate shared facilities with a lack of facilities and high rates of crime, suggesting a strong demand for affordable and appropriate accommodation. In 2018, the Kenyan Government introduced an initiative aimed at private investors/developers to raise funds for the construction of hostels to serve the increasing student population39. However, uptake has been limited due to the impacts of COVID-19, the high cost of land, inadequate lending and insufficient experience in development and management of purpose-built student hostels.
Affordable housing for all segments of the population – particular attention should be paid to SIGs and other vulnerable groups such as women, informal settlement dwellers, the unemployed and underemployed people (see case study 4-19) whereby access should not be conditional on working in the formal sector.
For example, women often lack access to land/property ownership due to social and cultural norms, and this makes them more vulnerable, with recent studies demonstrating that gender equality in land/property ownership can substantially decrease violence against women (GBV). Moreover, assets’ ownership can empower women to act sooner when they are already facing GBV.
Consequently, the development of affordable housing options and models - such as outright purchase, subsidised purchase, long term rental or rent to buy – will support economic development in Wote and provides a major opportunity to promote more socially inclusive forms of ownership and control over property over and above employment creation along the value chain.
39 Construction Kenya, State Courts Private Investors in Sh20bn Student Hostels Project (2018) Available at: www.constructionkenya.com/5263/kenya-student-hostels-project/ (Accessed: 11/02/2022).
The development of an integrated housing programme, including the construction of affordable housing, also provides a significant opportunity for Wote Municipality to take advantage of the advancements in climate-smart infrastructure and housing. The Municipality must ensure that new housing constructed in their area of jurisdiction complies with water and energy efficiency and usage standards, whilst also educating developers and building owners/occupants on the benefits of water and energy efficient buildings. This can be done through campaigns and in collaboration with the local building industry develop a range of building by-laws to encourage innovation and compliance.
For example, to help meet the demand for affordable housing, good supplies of low-cost building materials are required. The County have already made some progress in this area, having purchased three Hydraform machines to make interlocking stabilised soil blocks. These moulding and compression machines, take mixes of locally available sands, earth, clay, ash, and the like, and produce stable blocks that fit together like Lego. The blocks do not require mortar, and construction can be undertaken by those without traditional block laying skills. This makes construction of walls both low-cost and rapid. There is potential to expand the use of these blocks across Wote and across the County, as well as other low-cost construction material and techniques, as part of the affordable housing initiative. This not only reduces the cost of housing construction through innovation but also increases the potential for entrepreneurial activity and employment opportunities for the local communities.
It is noted that this UEP has identified within the shortlisted VCs the possible development of a low-cost construction centre, manufacturing construction materials (blocks and roof panels) and training teams in new building techniques. The centre would oversee the construction of demonstration buildings using the new techniques and materials, as well as water-wise reticulation and energy saving technologies. It is intended that the VC would build around the existing blockmaking service provided by the County, expanding capacity and training. In addition, the VC would aim to work with the Wote Vocational Training Institute to train future builders.
> Compacted earthen floors: These are made from compacted layers of laterite, fine earth mix and a topping of an oil sealant. This provides a dust and water resilient flooring, comparable with concrete but at much lower cost. > Modular roofing panels: These are interlocking (1 m2) panels made from a compressed waste fibre core (e.g., sugar cane fibre, straw or corn husks) coated in a thick veneer of recycled plastics. The panels are waterproof and provide good thermal insulation. > 3D printing: while the technology is still developing, demonstration projects indicate that costs could be low (e.g., under $ 4,000 for a complete single floor structure of 60 m2 including ducting), using a range of widely available materials (e.g., raw materials can include straw, husk, hydraulic lime, sand, silica, ash, and small volumes of cement)40 .
Finally, as part of its overall housing programme, the Municipality should also set conditions based on sustainable development goals (SDG) for the sale or lease of County/ Municipal land to housing developers/investors, for instance with regards to the incorporation of sustainable climate resilient infrastructure and building materials, including renewable technologies. Crucially, the proper location and siting of new housing schemes will be important to sustainable development, including locations in proximity to existing or future climate resilient infrastructure, and positioned away from wetlands and other sensitive ecosystems. Case Study 4-19: Reall & National Cooperative Housing Union (NACHU), Kenya4142
Reall, a housing development scheme, has been working in partnership with Kenya’s NACHU, with the objective to provide affordable and appropriate housing and infrastructure to the urban low and modest-income communities. The initiative also incorporates community mobilisation and training, technical support, housing finance, lobbying and advocacy. The partnership has seen the construction of over 1,500 homes, with NACHU also engaging national and regional governments to assist in creating housing policy to consider people on low incomes. The partnership focused on commercial low-income housing developers, and negotiations with government-backed mortgage providers and commercial banks on end-user finance.
Some examples of the partnership’s work include:
Nanyuki – a community-based partnership in which NACHU constructed housing and sanitation whilst the community facilitated roads, electricity, fencing and landscaping. The scheme was supported by a savings and credit cooperative that offered financial assistance, providing micro-mortgages for those housed.
Alfa-Mwanda – a project to provide homes for those formerly residing in densely-populated informal settlements. All tenants previously lived in unsuitable conditions with little or no access to safe and reliable water or sanitation. They were offered end-user finance by NACHU, in the form of micro mortgages.
40 Treehugger, reporting ICON printing of housing in Texas (2020) accessed at: https://www. treehugger.com/icon-d-printed-affordable-homes-4858287 41 Reall, About Reall: Our Mission (2022) Available at: https://reall.net/about-reall/ourmission/ (Accessed: 11/02/2022). 42 Reall, Data Dashboard: Alfa Mwanda Housing (2022) Available at: https://reall.net/datadashboard/kenya/alfa-mwanda-housing/ (Accessed: 11/02/2022).
4.4.2 VC2 – Solid waste management
This VC aims is for the establishment of a commercialised solid waste collection and processing service, that improves collection across the Municipality, maximises the recovery and production of useful materials and minimises disposal. Benefits of this VC then include:
> Reducing the costs of waste collection and disposal to the Municipality; > Reducing the need for landfill and environmental degradation; > Providing compost for farmers and biogas for domestic cooking; > Supporting improvement in the attractiveness of the
Town to investors; > Creating direct employment for around 124 full-time employees in safe and hygienic conditions, with potentiaL to extend secure employment to existing informal waste pickers; and > Creating the opportunity for producing products from recyclate, with links to low-cost building materials.
4.4.2.1. Base Assessment
Wote Municipality generates an estimated 17,000 tonnes of waste per year, of which 60% are organics. It is estimated that currently less than 6,000 tonnes are collected each year by truck for open disposal outside Town. Across the County the overall collection rate is far lower, reported at 3.7% in the County Spatial Plan43 .
Currently, Wote Municipality does not charge a fee for waste collection, transportation or disposal. Collections can be infrequent and the days and times for collection are not always known to households and businesses.
43 WMB & Renaissance Planning, Wote Municipal Spatial Plan 2021-2030 (2021). Waste collection is undertaken using a combination of lorries, carts and wheelbarrows, and once collected the waste is taken to an undesignated, unfenced site on the outskirts of Town, where it is dumped and burnt. The approach to the handling of Municipal waste is similar in other urban centres in the County.
Recovery of waste is limited to the small volumes collected by informal waste pickers, who sell on to a series of traders/ middlemen for eventual use in one of the major cities. There are no recycling businesses in Makueni County. Waste management presents a major challenge to Wote Municipality, as well as other urban centres in the County, with key issues including:
> Collections are infrequency and erratic, leading to waste being dumped around Town; > Lack of receptacles for domestic waste: general littering around Town limiting attractiveness for investors; > Inadequate sensitisation of the residents on proper solid waste management; > Lack of solid waste separation and sorting, leading to waste being undervalued; > No appropriate disposal sites: after collection most solid waste is burnt, buried or dumped; > Risk of pollution of the Ndue Nguu stream and River Kai from existing dumpsite; > Lack of PPE for waste handlers; and > Limited capacity for handling biomedical waste, with waste from the Makueni Referral Hospital transferred to Makindu or Machakos for incinerated.
The Municipality commissioned a report on Solid Waste Management Policy (December 2020) which sets out the policy goals of minimising waste generation and promoting recovery, re-use and recycling of waste materials as well as sustainable waste disposal. This VC aims to support the Municipality in achieving those objectives through the commercialisation of waste collection services, combined with waste separation and processing that maximises recovery of useful materials and minimises disposal. This VC is also supported by other policies at the national and county level:
> Makueni CIDP which supports the development of waste management systems in the County’s six urban centres including Wote; > Vision 2030 with its focus on efficient and sustainable waste management systems; > Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources’
Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Action (NAMA), supporting a circular economy approach to solid waste management in urban areas; > Makueni County Government’s Solid Waste Baseline Survey, which supports the need for integrated strategies and capacity building, both physical and human; > NEMA’s (National Environment Management Authority)
National Solid Waste Management Strategy which supports improved collection, user charges and reprocessing/recycling; and > Wote Municipality Waste Management Policy, 2020, which supports an integrated approach with potential for commercialisation and user charges.
4.4.2.2. Production Potential and Supply Chain Overall process flow
The collection services in Wote Municipality would be expanded to provide a regular service to all areas. Additional waste operatives, estimated at around 50 full time equivalent jobs, would be supported by additional vehicles and hand carts, as well as extensive use of the three-bin system throughout the Municipality. With the three-bin system, separate receptacles for dry recyclate (paper, card, wood, metal, glass, etc.), organic waste (fruit and vegetable scraps, plant trimming, etc.) and residual waste, are placed together in order to reduce the separation and sorting needed once waste is collected. A combination of large bins (each with a capacity of around 1,100 litres) and small bins (100 litres) would be located throughout the Municipality.
The roll-out of the three-bin system would be supported by extensive user engagement and education, and the trucks taking the contents of the three bins would be designed to maintain separation of the materials.
Once the waste is collected it will be transferred to a treatment site. Primary processing would comprise the following:
> Initial delivery > Where there is no separation at source, waste to be loaded onto a conveyor for picking out key streams: > Plastics > Metal containers > Glass bottles > Organics > Separation of metals into ferrous / non-ferrous After primary separation, sorted waste would be aggregated into a series of containers in readiness for the next stage of processing comprising:
> Metals: compacting and bailing of aluminium and steel cans, ready for sending to Nairobi or Mombasa for sale and processing. > Plastics:
> PET bottles to be removed for compacting and bailing, prior to transporting to PETCO in Nairobi, the national recycler of PET > Other plastics to be washed, separated by type (e.g. PE,
PVC, etc., if volumes sufficient), and bailed for dispatch to a processor, with potential for use in local roof panel facility or plastic lumber extrusion.
> Glass: crushing for use as aggregate, combing with stones and other inert waste (e.g. some construction waste). If glass volumes are sufficient, separation by colour and dispatch to Nairobi for bottle making. > Organics: shredding and then processing in an anaerobic digester, to produce biogas (suitable for bottling and use in domestic stoves) and a digestate (a fertiliser). > Card and paper: sorting and bailing of unsoiled material for dispatch to mills in Nairobi. If volumes are low, potential to shred and combine with the organics. > Landfill of residual waste. A central element of the processing will be the anaerobic digester (AD), which will take over half of the expected volumes of solid waste. In the AD, organic matter is broken down to produce biogas (a methane rich gas) and a fertiliser with similar properties to compost. While the AD represents a substantial capital investment (over KES 400 million), it will be responsible for around half of the potential revenues from the processing plant through sales of gas and fertiliser.
The specific levels of separation and approach would depend upon the contents of the waste and total volumes. A detailed assay of the waste stream in the Municipality would be required as a first step in developing this VC. There is potential for the operations in the Municipality to link up with other collection and sorting activities in Makueni and neighbouring counties. By aggregating volumes of waste, transport costs to Mombasa or Nairobi would be reduced, and the potential for local recycling improves.
