Zoomlion Kenya Waste Services Ltd has stepped up efforts to restore Nairobi’s Dandora dumpsite and clear accumulated waste from illegal dumping sites as part of the second edition of the Safisha Kanairo campaign.
The initiative, implemented in partnership with the Nairobi City County Government, seeks to improve sanitation, reclaim public spaces and transform waste from an environmental burden into an economic resource.
Zoomlion says its operations now cover waste evacuation across Nairobi’s 17 sub-counties, with legacy waste being removed from identified illegal dumping sites and transported to the Dandora dumpsite.
At Korogocho Market, traders say the regular evacuation of accumulated waste has improved the cleanliness of the busy commercial centre.
David Kirui, Secretary of the Korogocho Market Traders Association, said the cleaner environment was helping attract customers while reducing the burden of waste collection costs for traders.
Ruaraka Sub-County Environment Officer Evans Ochieng said the partnership had already helped close five illegal dumping sites in the area, while supporting efforts to improve sanitation in residential and commercial centres.
However, Zoomlion says the long-term goal is to move away from simply transporting waste to dumpsites.
The company is constructing a waste recycling and value-addition facility in Ruai, which is expected to sort collected waste and process organic material into compost and fertiliser. Plastic waste could also be processed into pellets for the manufacture of products such as household waste bins.
Zoomlion Kenya Operations Manager Laud Mike Tagoe said the initiative was intended to provide Nairobi with a cleaner environment while creating an economic market for waste through recycling and value addition.
At Dandora, the company has established an on-site container office to monitor ongoing engineering works, including waste compaction, re-engineering and capping.
Zoomlion said heavy compaction had already helped reduce foul odours affecting neighbouring communities, with the wider restoration project targeting ecological transformation of the site within two years.
The company also carried out emergency waste evacuation operations in flood-prone areas of Korogocho on August 25, clearing obstructed waterways and helping protect vulnerable households.
As part of the campaign’s community outreach, Zoomlion officials also visited Wangu Comprehensive Primary School, located next to the Dandora dumpsite.
The school hosts more than 5,800 pupils, 70 teachers and 44 hearing-impaired learners. School leaders highlighted challenges linked to dumpsite fumes, water shortages and security concerns, including sections of the perimeter wall that have collapsed.
The delegation, led by Zoomlion Kenya Head of Communication Daisy Chelangat and officials from Zoomlion Ghana headquarters, donated scholastic materials to pupils and pledged continued collaboration with the school in tree planting, environmental education and support for perimeter security.
Zoomlion said the Safisha Kanairo campaign is also intended to create opportunities for young people and waste pickers in the circular economy, including recycling, material recovery and organic fertiliser production.
The company estimates that its operations have created more than 5,000 direct and indirect green jobs.
Zoomlion is urging county governments across Kenya to embrace public-private partnerships as a way of mobilising private investment, technical expertise and modern technologies to address the country’s waste management challenges.
The company, a subsidiary of Ghana-based Jospong Group of Companies, says it is drawing on more than two decades of experience in waste management, recycling and landfill engineering.
Through its operations in Ghana and other African countries, Zoomlion says it has undertaken landfill restoration and greening projects aimed at converting former waste sites into safer and productive public spaces.
The company says the Nairobi initiative is ultimately aimed at changing the perception of waste from a public health and environmental liability into a resource capable of generating jobs, agricultural inputs and recyclable products.
