1899- Builders set up camp at “Ewaso Nai’ben”: 

1901- Kenyatta National Hospital opens:

1919- Nairobi becomes capital of British East Africa:

1946- Nairobi’s national park established:

1950- Nairobi became a city:

1963- Nairobi becomes capital of Kenya:

1970- University of Nairobi is built:

1998- U.S embassy bombed in Nairobi:

2001- Nairobi women's hospital founded:

2012- Nairobi-Syokimau railway begins operating:

2017- Mombasa-Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway:

Through times of hardship and struggle, Nairobi, Kenya has preserved its historical culture while maintaining the status of one of Africa’s fastest growing cities. The society within the city is both culturally diverse and proactive in growth, even with the obstacles of a third world country at hand. The land was settled many years ago by ancient tribes and has been flourishing with life ever since. The people of Nairobi don’t have the simplest way of life. Many people are malnourished and undereducated due to the great deal of poverty that overwhelms the slums. The city as far away as it seems, is exceptionally similar to America, they trade, grow crops, have many people of different religions living together in peace and more. Since the founding of the city countless affairs have evolved within Nairobi’s society. Such as, gender roles, woman’s rights and health care. Sadly, the population is still in pursuit for a higher standard of change. As well as the city has been self sufficient on its own it’s still in a dreadful shape. The health care system is not up to date and woman are still are not satisfied with the manner they are treated in. Many of Nairobi’s citizens work hard to facilitate change for the greater good of the population. 

Nairobi is a cultural city, found in the heart of Kenya. The city wasn’t always the capital of Kenya. At one point in time what is known as Nairobi today was only a colonial railway settlement. The railway was built in 1899 but the builder of the “Lunatic Express” railway line. The Builders decided to set up camp in “Ewaso Nai Ben” because of the fruitful water supply and the cool temperature of the water. The settlement soon became a trading central. In 1919 the British decided to move their administrative headquarters from Mombasa to the cooler city Nairobi and became the capital of British East Africa. After Kenya received independence from Britain, the city of Nairobi became the capital of Kenya in 1963. The city continued to develop because of the appel Nairobi had. People were rushing into the city and the economy thrived. 

Education in the city is an ideal to the Kenyan government. In the 1960’s the government promised free education to it’s citizens. However becuase of other cost, it was a hard promise to keep. In modern Nairobi the educational system is very familiar to ours. There is elementary school, middle school, high school and then university. Since the early stages of Nairobi a great deal of advancement has been made to the educational systems but citizens are still looking for further growth. There has been major issues within it’s educational system such as the lack of teachers and funding. Many other issues since the initial start of Nairobi have occurred as well. 

Currently the Kenyan government declared a national food emergency in Nairobi. A large percent of the population is living in poverty. In result many people are suffering from severe malnutrition. This crisis is located mainly in the city’s urban slums. The escalating price of food and declining incomes have contributed to the serverness of the crisis. Most families are forced to survive on one meal a day if even that. Another factor that contibuated to the food shortage is the drought that brought in poor harvest. Families have been driven to the point of scrummaging for food in dumps to feed their loved ones. This difficult dilemma has already shown major repercussions. Thirty percent of children have already been pulled out of the educational system becuase families cannot afford to put food on the table and send their children to school. Many people desire to give help to the people living in Nairobi’s slums, people are helping by sending food and money to the citizens. 

Trade is an ideal in Nairobi. The products Kenya receive are mostly machinery, transportation equipment, petroleum products, iron and steel. They trade with United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, the U.S, Japan and Germany. Kenya exports tea, coffee, horticultural products and petroleum products produced by their own people. Trade in the city is crucial for the economy in Nairobi.

In Nairobi each gender has there own role. The male citizens are responsible for the care of animals among herders. In the agricultural communites men and woman both work the field. In addition woman also cook, clean, keep a garden vegetable, watch the children and fetch water. Most men try to find jobs in the city, this helps the families bring in more income. In Kenya women are paid less than men and have lower status jobs, they are considered second class citizens. The woman in Nairobi aren’t treated well, there is no repercussions for domestic violence and it is common. However the National Women’s council of Kenya are trying to put an end to the unjust treatment towards women. The woman of Nairobi want to be treated in a manner with higher respect and be treated as equals. 

The population of Nairobi do not all practice one religion. During the early stages of Nairobi ancient tribes also had relgious belief and practices. Among the early tribe of the Masai people, they celebrated for several days at the start of the each rainy season. They celebrate with song, dance, food, and prayer. They had ritual dances that required performers to die their hair and paint their bodies. Other tribes such as the Kikuyu tribe celebrated the start of the planting season. They celebrated with ceremonial dance. Most Kenyans believe that at death one enters the spirit world, this idea has a major impact on the living world in Nairobi. This idea is instrumental into the manner the people live in Nairobi. 

The citizens in Nairobi mainly depend on traditional cures such as herbal medicines and healing rituals. However sickness and disease is common in Kenya. The health care system isn’t up to date with modern health care. Most clinics and hospitals are understaffed and poorly supplied. The clinics that run through the country mainly focus on pretivie medicine. In the past they’ve focuses on preventing sleeping sickness and malaria and have been successful in lowering the rate of those diseases. The city still has high rate of other sickness such as Gastroenteritis, dysentery, and trachoma are still common amongst the population. Nairobi is doing its best to obtain more advanced medicine for the overall health of their citizens.

Nairobi, Kenya has thrived faster than any other African city in it’s area. The citizens of the city preserve the culture Nairobi has to offer. The city goes way back into ancient times when the settlers did not fully comprehend what they had begun in the evolution of a major city. Nairobi has matured into a successful and self sustainable city that it is today. 

Throughout East Africa the economy in Nairobi is by far the most lucrative when compared to the other East African cities that are even struggling to escape the commodity downturn. While compared to other East African cities, Nairobi is doing exceptionally well, however the capital still has great struggles that need to be dealt with within the city boarders.

Nairobi is significantly more successful than other cities in East Africa. One of the reasons is that the country’s main commercial center is Nairobi. Other reasons that lead to Nairobi’s thriving economy are the city’s devloped infrastructure this includes modern finance and communication systems. In addition a variety of domestic and international banks operate out of Nairobi as well, which only helps the local economy blossom.

The city has the largest industrial center in the country. The center provides numerous jobs for people with acquired skills such as carpenters, metal workers, furniture makers, vehicle repairman and retailers. Many of the goods the workers in the center produce goes straight to trade with other nations. Nairobi exports processed foods, beer, vehicles, soaps, construction material, engineering, textiles and chemicals with other nations. Trade in Nairobi’s economic system is an essential ideal that holds the entire system together. 

A large amount of the income Nairobi recives in from the oil industry. The discovery of oil in Kneya first begun in the 1950s within the Lamu Basin. The pertrolum industury had not been commmericially viable until 2012. Today Nairobi has over 80 wells that mainly fall around the Terrtiary Rift. In the city there are multiple Basins that oil are found in some of these are the Tertiary Rift Basin, the Mandera Basin, and the Anza Basin. This oil found in Kenya is exported throught Nairobi’s ports. This industry is a crucial part in Nairobi’s economy and trade. 

Fifty percent of export income comes from Nairobi’s agriculture. The majority of the people work in agriculture, eighty percent of the population of the city have jobs in that field. The land used by farmers are exceptionally fertile. Farmers grow a wide range of food they grow maize, sorghum, cassava, beans, and fruit. On smaller farms other more lucrative crops such as coffee are grown. Coffee used to be the country’s largest foreign exchange earner until Nairobi became a popular location for tourist and claimed its well earned title. 

Another source of income for Nairobi is tourism. People who visit the city stay at hotels for weeks at a time the city offers a range from low budget hotels to grand luxury hotels. During their visit they see the city’s game parks and use top-rate tour guides. The city provides tourist with numerous tour companies and travel agencies to choose from. In result tourism has taken over the economy in Nairobi, coffee has been replaced with tourism as the country’s largest foreign exchange earner. What makes Nairobi so intriguing to tourists is that the city is known as “the wildlife central of the world”. Nairobi has wildlife within its city borders as well and many national parks. Nairobi National Park is the most well known park throughout Kenya. The park is home to lions, giraffes, black rhinos and over four hundreds species of birds. A safari walk is offered at the park and gives tourists an unreal experience walking side by side with the animals that inhabit the park. Many people visit Nairobi for this reason only, these animals bring thousands of tourists to Nairobi, Kenya every year. 

Overall the economy in Nairobi is doing exceptionally well, sadly that success is not reflected in the slums of the city. Thousands of people are living in poverty. Incomes within the slums have decreased while the price of food, water, housing and gas have increased. The housing in Nairobi is known the most expensive city in East Africa to live in. Many families have turned to rummaging through dumpsters for leftover food. The costs of school and food have become to difficult to afford for some families and almost thirty percent of children have already been pulled out of school becuase the cost is too much of a burden for the families. The lack of jobs contribute to this issue, the city cannot keep up with the amount of people joining the job market each year the number is close to one million people. Fifty percent of people who graduated recently don’t have the capability to get a job. Lack of jobs isn’t the only obstacle. Their is a lack of good jobs as well. Many people are well educated coming out of university in the city, less than twenty five percent of the population are able to acquire positions in the formal job market. The people who are lucky enough to find real jobs get paid close to nothing for what they do. Most people are paid under $250 a month. The rest of the job market are positions of self-employment, odd jobs, or unpaid jobs in wholesale trade or retail. The people living in the slums must overcome the difficult obstacle of poverty within their community. 

The economic status of Nairobi is diverse within the city. While some aspects of the economy are thriving and better than ever, other areas are suffering and doing all they can to get by. However throughout all the cities in East Africa, Nairobi has the most vibrant economy of them all. 

 

“Kenya.” Countries and Their Cultures, www.everyculture.com/Ja-Ma/Kenya.html. This source presents details on Nairobi's geography and location. It explains the Kenyan flag and the symbolism behind the flag. One can learn from this source about Nairobi's history and ethnic relations.

“Nairobi.” Nairobi - Getting There, Government, For Further Study, www.city-data.com/world-cities/Nairobi.html. This source provides details on the local population and recent government in Nairobi. It bring up many topics, including the local transportations, airports, and health care. The source gives information on the best medical facilities in East africa, and how they are located in Nairobi. 

“The City of Nairobi and ‘The Lunatic Express.’” The History of Nairobi - Capital City of Kenya, www.kenya-information-guide.com/history-of-nairobi.html. This source helps the reader understand the history of Nairobi and how the city became Kenya's capital. It gives detail about the history of Nairobi’s name and the population of Nairobi. It explains the beauty of Nairobi and how its a “green city in the sun.”

“Hidden Crisis in Nairobi's Slums.” Concern, www.concernusa.org/story/hidden-crisis-in-nairobis-slums/. This source gives information on the crises in Nairobi and what charities are doing to help. It explains why the crisis of poverty in Kenya is in need of immediate response. It provides details on how the Kenyan government declared a national food emergency and how the population of Nairobi are severely malnourished. 

“Nairobi: A City Seeking Answers.” Education in Nairobi, citiesoftheworld07.blogspot.com/2010/10/education-in-nairobi.html. This source explains the importance of education in Nairobi. It goes into detail about the history of education and goes on to explain the current education system. It brings up details on the many private and public schools in Nairobi and the cities problems with their the educational system.