📰 Nairobi · page 4

Nairobi has an annual restaurant week (NRW) at the beginning of the year, January–February.269 Nairobi's restaurants offer dining packages at reduced prices.[125]270 NRW is managed by Eatout Kenya which is an online platform that lists and reviews restaurants in Nairobi, and provides a platform for Kenyan foodies to congregate and share.271

Music

Nairobi is the centre of Kenya's music scene.272 Benga is a Kenyan genre which was developed in Nairobi.273 The style is a fusion of jazz and Luo music forms.274 Mugithi is another popular genre in Kenya, with its origins in the central parts of the country.275 A majority of music videos of leading local musicians are also filmed in the city.276

In the 1970s, Nairobi became the prominent centre for music in the African Great Lakes.277 During this period, Nairobi was established as a hub of soukous music.278 This genre was originally developed in Kinshasa corpus and Brazzaville corpus.279 After the political climate in the region deteriorated, many Congo corpuslese artists relocated to Nairobi.280 Artists such as Orchestra Super Mazembe moved from Congo to Nairobi and found great success.[126]281 Virgin records became aware of the popularity of the genre and signed recording contracts with several soukous artists.282

More recently, Nairobi has become the centre of the Kenyan hip hop scene.283 The genre has become very popular amongst local youth, and domestic musicians have become some of the most popular in the region.[127]284 Successful artists based in Nairobi include Jua Cali, Nonini, Camp Mulla, Juliani, Eric Wainaina, and Nameless.285 Popular record labels include Ogopa DJs and Calif Records.286

Nairobi, including the coastal towns of Mombasa and Diani, have recently become the centre of EDM in Kenya, producing DJs as well as producers like DJ Fita.287

Many nightclubs in and around the city have witnessed a growth in the population that exclusively listen to Electronic Dance Music, especially amongst the younger generations.288 Gospel music is also popular in Nairobi just as in the rest of Kenya, with gospel artists having a great impact in the mostly Christian city.289

Musical group Sauti Sol performed for U.S. President Barack Obama when he was in the city for the 2015 Global Entrepreneurship Summit.[128]290

Sports

Nairobi is the African Great Lakes region's sporting centre.291 Notable annual events staged in Nairobi include Safari Rally, Safari Sevens rugby union tournament, and Nairobi Marathon.292

Facilities

The premier sports facility in Nairobi and generally in Kenya is the Moi International Sports Centre in the suburb of Kasarani.293 The complex was completed in 1987, and was used to host the 1987 All Africa Games.294 The complex comprises a 60,000 seater stadium, the second largest in the African Great Lakes (after Tanzania's new national stadium), a 5,000 seater gymnasium, and a 2,000 seater aquatics centre.[129]295

The Nyayo National Stadium is Nairobi's second largest stadium renowned for hosting global rugby event under the "Safaricom Sevens".296 Completed in 1983, the stadium has a capacity of 30,000.[130]297 This stadium is primarily used for football.298 The facility is located close to the Central Business District, which makes it a convenient location for political gatherings.299

Nairobi City Stadium is Nairobi's first stadium, and used for club football.300

Nairobi Gymkhana is the home of the Kenyan cricket team, and was a venue for the 2003 Cricket World Cup.301

Ulinzi Sports Complex was officially opened by President Uhuru Kenyatta in 2022 after its construction that started in 2020.[131]302 It has a capacity of 7,500, an 8-lane Athletics track, training grounds and an indoor arena.[132]303

Dandora Stadium, a 4,000 capacity stadium opened in 2024, hosts some of the top flight national league football tournaments.304 The stadium has seats in the VIP section and regular stands.[133][134][135]305

Talanta Sports Stadium, with a capacity of 60,000, is currently under construction with an estimated completion date of February 2026.[136][137][138]306

Football

Football is the most popular sport in the city by viewership and participation.307 This is highlighted by the number of football clubs in the city, including Kenyan Premier League sides Gor Mahia, A.F.C.308 Leopards Sports Club, Tusker F.309 C. and Mathare United.310

Kenya, together with Tanzania and Uganda will be cohosting the 2025 CHAN competition.[139][140]311 Also, the three countries will jointly host the 2027 AFCON football competition.[141][142][143]312

Golf

There are several golf courses within a 20 km radius of Nairobi.[144]313 The oldest 18-hole golf course in the city is the Royal Nairobi Golf Club.314 It was established in 1906 by the British, just seven years after the city was founded.315 Other notable golf clubs include the Windsor Golf Hotel and Country Club, Karen Country Club, VetLab Sports Club, Golf Park Golf Club, Kenya Railways Golf Club, Sigona Golf Club and Muthaiga Golf Club.316

The Kenya Open golf tournament, which is part of the European Tour, takes place in Nairobi.[145]317

Equestrian Sports

The Ngong Racecourse in Nairobi is the centre of horse racing in Kenya.[146][147]318

The Kenya Open Polo tournament and other polo games are often hosted at the Nairobi Polo Club.[148]319

The Horse Association of Kenya offices are located in Nairobi, at Racecourse.320

Rugby

Rugby is a popular sport in Nairobi with 8 of the 12 top flight clubs based here.321

The Rugby Football Union of East Africa (RFUEA) is hosted in Nairobi.322

Basketball

Basketball is a popular sport played in the city's primary, Secondary and college leagues.323 Many of the city's urban youth are basketball fans and watch the American NBA.324

Marathons

Nairobi often hosts a number of marathons including:325

• Nairobi City Marathon326
• Standard Chartered Nairobi Marathon327

Places of worship

The places of worship are predominantly Christian churches and temples: Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Nairobi (Catholic Church), Anglican Church of Kenya (Anglican Communion), Presbyterian Church of East Africa (World Communion of Reformed Churches), Baptist Convention of Kenya (Baptist World Alliance), and Assemblies of God.[149]328 There are also Muslim mosques including Jamia Mosque.329

Education

The majority of schools follow the Kenyan Competence Based Education (CBE).330 Nairobi Innovation Week (NIW) is an annual that was started in 2015.331 It is organized by the University of Nairobi and in collaboration with government agencies.332 It focuses on partnerships, innovations, incubation, and startups.333 It promotes an entrepreneurial culture.334 It is an event for local and international innovators to showcase innovations, and to network.[150][151]335

Higher education

Nairobi is home to several Universities and Colleges.336

• The University of Nairobi is the largest and oldest university in Kenya.337 It was established in 1956, as part of the University of East Africa, but became an independent university in 1970.338 The university has approximately 84,000 students.[152]339
• Kenyatta University is situated 16 km from Nairobi on the Nairobi road Thika dual carriageway on 1100 acre of land.340 The university was chartered in 1985, offering mainly education-related courses, but has since diversified, offering medicine, environmental studies, engineering, law, business, statistics, agriculture, and economics.341 It has a student body of about 32,000, the bulk of whom (17,000) are in the main campus.342 It is one of the fastest-growing public universities.343
• Strathmore University started in 1961 as an Advanced Level (UK) Sixth Form College offering Science and Arts subjects.344 The college started to admit accountancy students in March 1966, and thus became a university.345 In January 1993, Strathmore College merged with Kianda College and moved to Ole Sangale Road, Madaraka Estate, Nairobi.346
• United States International University – Nairobi was originally a branch of the United States International University, but became a fully autonomous university in 2005.347 It was first established in 1969.348 The university has accreditation from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, in the US, and the Government of Kenya.349 It is located in a quiet west side location of Roysambu area north-central Nairobi opposite the Safari Park Hotel.350
• In 2005, The Aga Khan Hospital, Nairobi was upgraded to a health sciences teaching hospital, providing post graduate education in medicine and surgery including nursing education, henceforth renamed the Aga Khan University Hospital.351
• The Catholic University of Eastern Africa located in Lang'ata suburb, obtained its "Letter of Interim Authority" in 1989.352 Following negotiations between the Authority of the Graduate School of Theology and the Commission for Higher Education (CHIEA), the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences was established three years later, culminating in the granting of the Civil Charter to CHIEA on 3 November 1992.353
• The Technical University of Kenya (formerly Kenya Polytechnic) is the only Technical University in the country.354 Established in 1961 as the Kenya Technical Institute, the university was chartered by Mwai Kibaki in 2013 to become an independent institution of higher learning (It was previously a constituent college of the University of Nairobi).355 It offers highly technical degree courses in three faculties: Engineering and Built Environment, Applied Sciences and Technologies, and Social Sciences and Technologies.356
• KCA University (formerly the Kenya College of Accountancy), located in Ruaraka.357
• Pan African Christian University is located along Lumumba Drive, Roysambu.358
• East Africa Institute of Certified Studies (well known as ICS College) is located at Stanbank House with branches in Mombasa and Kisumu.359
• Compugoal College360
• Pioneer International University in Ngara.361
• Riara University on Mbagathi road.362
• Multimedia University of Kenya363
• Daystar university364
• Africa International University365
• Cooperative university of Kenya Islamic University of Kenya366

Numerous other universities have opened satellite campuses in Nairobi.367 The Railways Training Institute established in 1956, is a notable institution of higher learning with a campus in Nairobi.368

Infrastructure

Transport

Major plans are being implemented in the need to decongest the city's traffic and the completion of Thika Road has given the city a much needed face-lift attributed to road's enhancement of global standards.369 Several projects have been completed, such as Syokimau Rail Station, the Eastern and Northern Bypasses, while numerous other projects are still underway.[153]370

The development of these critical transport facilities will, besides reducing transport costs due to faster movement of goods and people within the region, also increase trade, improve the socio-economic welfare of Northern Kenya and boost the country's potential in attracting investments from all over the world.371

Airports

Jomo Kenyatta International Airport is the largest airport in Kenya.372 Domestic travellers made up 40% of overall passengers in 2016, an increase of 32% since 2012.373 JKIA had more than 7 million passengers pass through it in 2016.374 In February 2017, JKIA received a Category One Status from the FAA, boosting the airport's status as a Regional Aviation hub.[154]375

Wilson Airport is a general-aviation airport handling smaller aircraft, mostly propeller-driven.376 In July 2016, construction of a new air traffic control tower commenced at a cost of KES 163 million (approximately US$1.63 million).[155]377

Moi Air Base is a military airport.378 In its earlier years, it was utilised as a landing strip in the pre-jet airline era.379 It was mostly used as a British passenger and mail route from Southampton to Cape Town corpus in the 1930s and 1940s.380 This route was served by flying boats between Britain and Kisumu and then by land-based aircraft on the routes to the south.381

Matatu

Main article: Matatu

Matatus are the most common form of public transport in Nairobi.382 Matatu, which literally translates to "three cents for a ride" (nowadays much more) are privately owned minibuses.[156]383 They generally seat 14 to 33 riders.384 Matatus operate within Nairobi, its environs and suburbs and from Nairobi to other towns around the country.[152]385 The matatu's route is imprinted along a yellow stripe on the side of the bus, and matatus plying specific routes have specific route numbers.[157]386

In 2004, a law was passed, requiring all matatus to include seat belts, speed governors and to be painted with a yellow stripe.[158]387 At first, this caused a furore amongst Matatu operators, but they were pressured by government and the public to make the changes.388 Matatus are now limited to 80 km/h.389

In November 2014 President Uhuru Kenyatta lifted the ban on the yellow stripe and allowed matatus to maintain the colourful graphics in an effort to support the youth in creating employment.390 Matatus in Nairobi were easily distinguishable by their extravagant paint schemes, as owners would paint their matatu with various colourful decorations, such as their favourite football team or hip hop artist.391 They are notorious for their poor safety records, which are a result of overcrowding and reckless driving.[159]392 Due to the intense competition between matatus, many are equipped inside with powerful sound systems and television sets to attract more customers.393