“Landmark Victory for Dandora Waste Pickers: Court Awards Ksh.25.8 Million for Rights Violation”
In a landmark ruling that underscores the tangible human cost of environmental neglect, the Environment and Land Court in Milimani has ordered the Nairobi County Government and the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) to pay Ksh.25.8 million in damages to 1,032 waste pickers of the Dandora dumpsite. The judgment, delivered on Wednesday by Justice Anne Omollo, is being hailed as a rare triumph for some of the city’s most vulnerable and overlooked workers.
For years, the men and women who eke out a living by scavenging recyclables from the sprawling Dandora waste site have done so under a haze of toxic smoke and amidst fetid decay. Their class action suit, filed in September 2023 by lawyer Ken Amondo, painted a stark picture of prolonged, unchecked exposure to severe air pollution, leading to chronic health issues and a daily assault on their dignity.
Justice Omollo’s ruling was unequivocal. She found that the systemic failure of the county government and NEMA to manage the dumpsite and mitigate pollution constituted a direct violation of the waste pickers’ constitutional rights. These weren’t abstract or procedural failures, the court emphasized, but breaches of fundamental guarantees: the right to a clean and healthy environment, to human dignity, to health, and to fair administrative action and good governance.
“It’s not just about the garbage,” commented one community advocate familiar with the case, who asked not to be named. “It’s about treating people as if they are invisible because of their work and their poverty. This judgment finally sees them.”
The court awarded each of the 1,032 petitioners Ksh.25,000, a sum that, while modest per individual, aggregates to a significant total of Ksh.25.8 million—a powerful symbolic and financial indictment of the authorities’ inaction.
Reactions from the affected community have been a mix of relief, validation, and cautious hope. “We have been coughing in the smoke, watching our children get sick, and feeling like no one in power cared,” said Mama Aisha, a long-time waste picker at Dandora. “This money is important, but more important is that the court has said our lives matter.”
The ruling sets a critical precedent in Kenya’s environmental and social justice landscape. It firmly links environmental degradation with concrete human rights violations and establishes a duty of care owed by the state to even its most marginalized citizens. Legal observers note it sends a clear warning to all county governments and environmental agencies countrywide about the consequences of neglecting statutory and constitutional obligations.
As the Nairobi County Government and NEMA contemplate the judgment and potential appeals, the waste pickers of Dandora are left with a hard-won recognition of their humanity—and a collective hope that this legal victory will translate into cleaner air, healthier lives, and a renewed sense of justice.
