Many residents of informal settlements, like Mathare in Nairobi, struggle to observe COVID’s social distancing measures and face increasingly precarious livelihoods alongside escalating care burdens, inadequate healthcare access, and deepening political exclusion.
This project will use action research methods to analyse grassroots-led COVID-19 responses in Nairobi’s informal settlements and support community mobilisation and advocacy. It aims to create co-produced knowledge on risks and grassroots responses that can foster mutual learning and facilitate exchanges with other grassroots organisations leading to more equitable and inclusive governance in the city. The findings will inform advocacy for a Special Planning Area (SPA) in Mathare, building on recent experience of similar multi-sectoral action-research.