Nairobi City County has stepped up the installation of solar-powered streetlights across major highways, residential estates and informal settlements as the county moves to illuminate the entire city and improve security, mobility and night-time economic activity.

The ongoing rollout is targeting previously poorly lit neighbourhoods, with installation teams already working in areas including Githogoro informal settlement, along Gitanga Road towards Kawangware and Mbagathi Road, also known as Raila Odinga Highway, among other locations.

The programme will continue across Nairobi’s 17 sub-counties, with the county targeting highways, estates, informal settlements and neighbourhood streets to ensure that no part of the city is left behind.

Governor Sakaja Johnson said the ambition was to establish a well-lit Nairobi where residents can safely move around, access public transport and conduct business at any time of the day.

The governor further revealed that the new solar streetlights are being fitted with tracking devices to deter vandalism and help safeguard public infrastructure.

He warned those involved in vandalising public lighting infrastructure that the new installations would be difficult to tamper with without being traced, urging residents to take collective responsibility for protecting the facilities.

“These lights are of no use to vandals. We have fitted them with trackers to help deter vandalism and protect this investment. I urge residents to take ownership of this programme and work with us in safeguarding the infrastructure. Keeping Nairobi lit is a shared responsibility,” Sakaja said.

The governor said the installation programme was part of a wider ambition to transform Nairobi into a safer, brighter and more accessible city, with works continuing until major roads, residential estates and informal settlements are covered.

“The programme envisages the installation and rehabilitation of 100,000 lighting points across Nairobi. We want to light up the entire city, ensuring that residents in our estates, informal settlements and along major highways all benefit from reliable public lighting.

“We want Nairobi to be a city where residents can walk, drive, work and do business with greater confidence, even after dark. Street lighting is not just about illumination; it is about security, mobility and creating an environment where economic activity can thrive,” he said.

The rollout also includes the rehabilitation of approximately 50,000 faulty streetlights, restoring lighting infrastructure in areas where existing installations have become non-functional.

The use of solar-powered lighting is expected to reduce dependence on conventional electricity while extending public lighting to neighbourhoods where access to conventional power infrastructure has been a challenge.

Beyond improving security, the county expects the expanded lighting network to support Nairobi’s night-time economy by creating better conditions for traders, transport operators, shops, restaurants and other businesses operating after dark.

Sakaja said the county would sustain the rollout until the city’s lighting network was significantly expanded, adding that improved public infrastructure must reach ordinary residents regardless of where they live.

The initiative forms part of the county’s wider urban improvement agenda, which seeks to enhance public safety, improve the quality of neighbourhoods and make Nairobi a more functional and accessible city.