DRAFT, prepared from public sources for Komb Green Solutions' review. Nothing is published. Every fact and photo to be corrected/approved by the team.
Community-based organization · Korogocho, Nairobi · est. 2017

A clean and crime-free Korogocho.

We are reformed youth, women, and neighbors who turned a dumpsite on the Nairobi River into Korogocho People's Park, the only resident-initiated green zone on the river, and we are not done.

Work with us
2018People's Park opened, built on a cleared 20-year-old dumpsite
70+active members, up from 5 founders
300+children use the park playground every weekend
40,000milk bags collected and reused for our tree nursery

Our story

Before 2017, many young people in Korogocho survived through crime, and around fifty of our peers lost their lives to mob justice and police killings. When construction of the Korogocho–Dandora bridge ended in early 2018, the young people it had employed faced sliding back. Three locals, Mzee Muchina, Fredrick Okinda, and Christopher Waithaka, mobilized us to do something different: clear the dumpsite by the bridge and restore the riverbank instead.

PHOTO: the riverbank before/after restoration (team's own archive)

It took a year to remove solid and human waste that had piled up for nearly twenty years. We built gabions, planted grass and bamboo, chosen because it absorbs more carbon and releases more oxygen, and on 19 November 2018 we opened the Korogocho People's Park to the public.

"The floods affected our emotions too, when we saw it sweep away the trees we planted. We want to raise gabions and extend them along the Nairobi River so that it will prevent the floods from damaging our People's Park and gardens in the future."

What we do

River restoration

Cleaning and restoring the Nairobi River riparian zone in Korogocho: waste removal, gabion walls, bamboo and fruit-tree planting. Now working within the Nairobi River Regeneration Project.

Korogocho People's Park

A safe green space with a playground, urban vegetable garden, and event grounds, a community hub where there was once a dumpsite and a hideout for crime.

Flood protection

Emergency gabion walls along the river to protect the park and homes from worsening floods.

Waste to income

Turning organic waste into compost and income for youth and women, a tree nursery grown in 40,000 reused milk bags, and a table-banking scheme so members can save and borrow.

Youth mentorship

A path out of crime for young people: training, work, and belonging. 27 members certified in riparian ecosystem management; 20 women trained in carpentry.

Community health

Food donations from the park's garden to Korogocho's most vulnerable families, plus health and family-planning awareness work with local schools and women's groups.

PHOTO: members at work in the park / tree planting (team's own archive)

Impact and recognition

2017, Founded and registered as a CBO by reformed youth after the Korogocho–Dandora bridge project.
2018, One year of riverbank clearing complete; Korogocho People's Park opens 19 November. Winner, Changing Faces competition (Public Space Network).
2020–2022, Park becomes a community hub; flood-defense gabions built with partner support; urban garden feeds vulnerable families.
2025, Featured by Dreamtown in "Reclaiming the Nairobi River"; part of the government's Nairobi River Regeneration Project.
2026, WAFA 2026 awards finalist; featured on the Cassandra Programme international panel; trunk sewer works progressing in Korogocho.

Community leaders estimate crime in the area has fallen dramatically since the park and mentorship programs began, and local police now point to Komb Green as an example of community-led change.

As featured by

BBCDeutsche WelleNTV KenyaKTNUN-Habitat / WUF12DreamtownPopulation MattersTRVSTRegreening Africa

Support our work

We are funded by small grants and community effort. Partners, donors, journalists, and volunteers are all welcome.

Partner or donate

Fund flood defenses, tree planting, or youth programs. Email us to discuss what is most needed right now.

Visit the park

Korogocho People's Park is open to all. Come and enjoy the fresh, clean air, and see what a community can build.

Tell our story

Journalists and researchers: we are happy to host visits and share our experience of community-led river restoration.

Email: reformistchriswise@gmail.com · Facebook: KOMB GREEN solutions · X: @kombgreen