Being raised up in the largest slum in Africa made me a victim of misrepresentation by the mainstream media. My first instinct was to visually represent my community without bias.
Background;
Over the years; Kibera slum, located 6km southwest of Nairobi City Centre, has been highlighted by foreign/International media based on its negatives. Some publications referring to it as “The Darkest Place on Earth.”
It is one of the biggest slums in the world with about 400,000 to 1 million slum dwellers with not a single land owner because the land is still owned by the National government of Kenya. The 2.5km sq piece of land was “gifted” to Nubians, the first settlers, by the British colonial rule. These settlers date their roots back to Western Sudan. Sudanese soldiers from Darfur region collaborated and helped the British during World War II. After the War, they were settled in Uganda while others in the outskirts of Nairobi as a “reward”. This is a period when Kenya was approaching its independence. Kibera used to be a dense forest and the first settlers named the area “Kibra” meaning “forest.” Other communities joined over the years in pursuit of elements of life that comes with the nearness to the capital city hence forming the largest urban informal settlement in Africa.
Current;
Today, Kibera slum depicts a dynamic culture with a complex livelihood.
This personal ongoing project documents the daily life inside the slum, going beyond the stereotype, capturing vivid imagery on social and economic lifestyle and the general mundane of its streets from an insiders perspective.
Mission;
It aims to help the global media and the world unlearn and learn, engage in thought provoking conversation that realizes unbiased representation of a community and Africa as a whole.
In addition, this project hopes to connect Kibera community with policy makers and people who can provide substantial solutions towards the pre-existing and developing challenges.
