| Abstract |
Empirical evidence from both developed and developing countries point to a positive correlation between development in the physical, social and policy and regulation aspects of infrastructure and economic development. The synergetic development of these components creates smart city systems which promote smart mobility, smart environments, smart living; sets the platform for smart people and smart governance; and ultimately results in smart economic growth. The emergent smart systems further promote inclusive growth, reduce natural disaster vulnerability and exposure, and improve resilience among the urban poor. Infrastructure development in Kenya, particularly investments in information communication technologies (ICTs), electricity, and transport infrastructure have been in rapid positive transition. These developments, which have been promoted by a friendly policy framework and hugely benefited from foreign assistance, have largely been beneficial for Nairobi, Kenya's capital. In just under two decades, Nairobi has grown to near universal mobile phone penetration and Internet connectivity is above 60 %. The city is now one of the most important ICT innovation cities in Africa, with several incubation centres, a growing number of ICT professionals and a youthful population that is technology savvy. These developments have opened Nairobi to many economic growth opportunities. This chapter discusses the level of infrastructure development in Nairobi and Kenya in general, particularly developments in ICT, energy and transport and how these are giving the city a comparative advantage against other African cities for smart growth. The key findings are that, with the exception of ICT, growth in other infrastructure sectors has been slow and largely unequal. The chapter also identifies that adoption of ICTs has been working towards improving efficiency in the existing and although the progress is slow, the future prospects for high efficient ICT integrated systems are high. |