Tuesday, March 31, 2026 - Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has dismissed suggestions that Kenya could move its capital from Nairobi to another city.
Mudavadi, who is also the Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and
Diaspora Affairs, explained that unlike countries such as Tanzania and Nigeria,
where Governments successfully relocated their capitals, Kenya’s reliance on
privately owned land makes the process impractical.
"Here, you are dealing with privately owned land that
belongs to Kenyan citizens.”
“Whether you are moving into Kajiado, Machakos, or Kiambu, or
going towards Thika, you would be looking at expropriating people's land to
create a new city.”
“I think that is not practical," he said.
Mudavadi noted that while Dar es Salaam was replaced by
Dodoma and Lagos by Abuja, Kenya’s land tenure system prevents similar
relocation.
"I don't think we can relocate from Nairobi and
establish another city. It has happened in Dar es Salaam; they moved to Dodoma.”
“In Nigeria, they moved away from Lagos to Abuja.”
“However, the land tenure system we have is different,"
he stated.
Urban planners have long argued that Nairobi’s rapidly
growing population has strained the city’s colonial‑era infrastructure, with
congestion, pollution and overstretched public services fueling debate on
whether relocating the capital could ease pressure.
However, Mudavadi’s remarks underscore the legal and social
complexities of such a move.
The Kenyan DAILY POST
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