The Anyimu family s urban-rural exodus is prompted by severe water and electricity rationing imposed by the Nairobi City Council and the Kenya Power and Lighting Company since June this year. Drought the severest in 30 years has reduced water levels in dams and reservoirs to dangerously low levels, leading to punitive power cuts in the city that last anywhere from 12 to 18 hours a day, six days a week. In July, the Nairobi City Council announced that city residents would only be supplied with water once a week until the next rains, which meteorologists predict may fail again this year. To cope with the crisis, the city s 3 million residents have adopted the lifestyles of their rural brethren. Evenings are spent around candles and paraffin lamps.
Meat is bought, cooked and eaten immediately as storage through refrigeration has become impossible.
Water, when available, is stored in jerricans, or bought on the open market for as much as Shs. Those who can afford to do so, are buying generators or digging boreholes in their back yards, which is causing water tables to drop further. Meanwhile, Maasai pastoralists from neighbouring districts have moved into the city, bringing their hungry cows with them. It is not just the cows that are hungry. The impact of the water and electricity rationing has been devastating for the economy.