LIGHT UP
KIBERA
A phased, solar-powered street lighting initiative bringing light — and safety — to Africa's largest informal settlement, one mile at a time.
BEFORE THE LIGHTS CAME ON
For most of Kibera, night has always meant darkness. There is no public grid lighting reaching most streets and footpaths through the settlement — once the sun drops, the alleys between homes, the paths to shared latrines and water points, and the lanes past small kiosks and workshops go completely black.
That darkness has a cost that falls hardest on women and girls, who describe simply not going out after dusk — to a toilet, to a neighbor's, to buy something they've run out of — because an unlit path is where you're most exposed to harassment and assault.
It has an economic cost too. Traders and small business owners close early rather than stay open in the dark, cutting the hours in a day when they can earn. Families who can afford it burn kerosene — a "koroboi" tin lamp — for light after dark: expensive night after night, hard on children trying to do homework by its dim, flickering flame, and a fire and respiratory health hazard in tightly packed housing.
Light Up Kibera exists to change that math, street by street.
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My name is John Kiprop. I have lived in Kibera for 13 years. I was once attacked by robbers in the early morning hours while it was still dark, coming from my security job in Kilimani. They beat me up and took my phone plus all the money I had with me at that time, that's how I ended up with the dent on my face. The lights will help to reduce such robbery incidents in future.
John Kiprop, Kibera resident
STREETS LIT,
PHASE BY PHASE
Just a few years ago, streets at Kibera were constantly dark. Today, even amidst citywide and countrywide blackouts caused by heavy rains, our solar lights are keeping the community illuminated. The goal is simple to state and hard to finish: light every street in Kibera.
3
PHASES TO DATE
2019 - 2026
100
SOLAR LIGHTS INSTALLED
45 (Phase I) + 55 (Phase II)
2+ mi
SOLAR-POWERED PATHWAYS LIT SO FAR
Phases I & II combined
200
NEW LIGHTS UNDERWAY
Phase III, 2026
HOW WE GOT HERE
I
2019
Phase I
WITH THE ROCKEFELLER FOUNDATION · 45 LIGHTS
The first 45 solar streetlights went up around the Kibera Town Centre, in collaboration with the Rockefeller Foundation. It was a small footprint with an outsized effect: local traders could keep their stalls open into the evening, and residents reported feeling safer moving through the area after dark.
II
2025
Phase II
WITH THE LIVELIHOOD IMPACT FUND · 55 LIGHTS
Building on Phase I's success, HNP partnered with the Livelihood Impact Fund (LIF) to add 55 more solar streetlights, completed in 2025. Together, Phases I and II brought the total to 100 lights and more than two miles of illuminated pathways through the settlement — keeping the community lit even through citywide blackouts caused by heavy rains.
III
2026
Phase III
WITH THE LIVELIHOOD IMPACT FUND · 200 LIGHTS
Phase III is underway in 2026 and is by far the biggest yet: 200 new solar streetlights, doubling the network built in Phases I and II combined. This stretch is also being engineered to last: HNP's Director of Technical Services, Byrones Khainga Shichenyi, traveled to China with the Livelihood Impact Fund's Billclinton Achar to refine the hardware for durability and lower maintenance.
"We are thinking beyond installation. Our focus is on long-term performance, maintenance, and making sure this technology serves the community for years to come."
Byrones Khainga Shichenyi, Director of Technical Services, HNP
