RESIDENTS' INTERACTION IN PUBLIC SPACE OF INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS

Understanding the spatial formation and management of informal settlements in Nairobi (3)

Abstract

 In recent years, public space has been re-evaluated as an important component of urban space that supports vibrant and rich life, and its role has also attracted attention in the context of informal settlements in developing countries. In regard to informal settlements, which have no legal development control, it is natural to assume that public space, or any surplus space, is easily lost due to development pressure. However, various public spaces that are formed and maintained are rooted in people’s lives; in fact, they serve as “living rooms” for people dwelling in small houses, and as a stage for people’s lives, economic activities, and interactions with a community. Thus, understanding the roles and functions of public spaces is important in improving the living environment of informal settlements.

 The question addressed in this study is what roles public space plays in people's lives in informal settlements. This research aims to clarify the characteristics of residents’ interaction in public spaces in order to examine the social functions of public spaces, taking the case of Mukuru Kwa Njenga, one of the major informal settlements in Nairobi, Kenya. In the field survey, the types of public spaces in Mukuru Kwa Njenga were identified, and the study areas of focus were extracted. Then, a questionnaire survey was conducted on 189 people in 70 groups in public spaces, and the characteristics of residents’ interactions in each study area were analyzed from the perspectives of scale, proximity, and degree of neighborhood relationship, mixture, and economic activity.

 It was found that street space is almost the only public space that can be used on a daily basis in informal settlements. In addition, some characteristics of residents’ interaction in such a street space are revealed: there are many small groups (scale); residents within short distances occupy the majority (proximity); some groups are based on neighborhood relationships and some are not (degree of neighborhood relationship); both homogeneous and heterogeneous groups in terms of gender, age, place of origin, ethnicity, and religion exist (degree of mixture); and residents’ interaction is strongly linked to economic activity (degree of economic activity).

 Furthermore, comparing residential streets and the main street, the former are characterized by a place for heterogeneous interaction that transcends gender, place of origin, ethnicity, and religion, while the latter has the character of a place for homogeneous interaction. It is considered that this is because people with different attributes such as hometown, ethnicity, and religion live in a mixed manner, and the residents’ interactions based on neighborhood relationships take place beyond attribute differences in the residential street. However, the main street, which is not as tied to neighborhood relationships, serves as a place where homogenous interactions establish and maintain relationships between people of the same hometown, ethnicity, religion, family members, and so on, while accepting visitors from a distance.

 In conclusion, we found that the public space in informal settlements functions as a place where social relationships between residents are created and evolved, and that the characteristics may be influenced by habitation patterns.