Nairobi, March 12, 2025
These modernized markets offer traders the opportunity to expand value chain inclusion of their cottage industries and grow the businesses of the jua kali sector,— Principal Secretary Charles Hinga said
President William Ruto’s Nairobi tour has continued to bear fruit for the city’s traders. On Wednesday, the 12th, the head of state commissioned the Mathare North Market and later laid the foundation stone for the Riruta Market.
The modernized working space will cater to 1,305 traders in the fashion and hair design sector, fresh produce, eatery operations, and the Mutimba sector. As of now, the Mathare North Market is 85% complete. The contractors plan to complete the Riruta Market within the contracted period.
According to PS Charles Hinga of the State Department of Housing and Urban Development, these two markets will serve as practical training hubs for traders in the future.
These markets will become on-the-job training hubs for next-generation workers.—State Department of Housing and Urban Development, Principal Secretary
The PS further revealed that the Mathare North Market will have 305 slots for business operators. In addition to these slots, the modern market will feature 40 shops on the perimeter section, 102 stalls for fresh produce, and 161 stalls for clothes traders.
On the other hand, the Riruta Market will not only have vendor stalls for 1,000 traders but also stalls for refreshment services and an ICT Hub. Other features include a dispensary for healthcare services, storage facilities for traders’ merchandise, administrative offices, and food courts.
PS Charles Hinga stated that the construction of the Mathare North Market and Riruta Market is in line with the state’s transformation agenda of creating decent workplaces. As such, people will go to shop while traders will sell their products in clean and attractive places.
The Nairobi government, led by Governor Johnson Sakaja, will oversee the entire operation. The city county leadership is also tasked with maintaining sanitation and hygiene standards within Riruta Market and the Mathare North Market while generating revenue from the traders
