City Park in the Parklands suburb of Nairobi is a hidden (but neglected) treasure!
The park was established in 1921 as a zoological garden and was declared a public park in 1925. Around a third of the park was stolen by land grabbers but in 2009, the remaining 60 hectares of the park were declared a protected area by the government.
It is home to some fascinating insights into Nairobi city life and history. It hosts a huge cemetery which has many sections including a Jewish cemetery, a commonwealth cemetery and many of the war graves for those who died fighting in WW2 are found in the park. Other notable graves are that of Pio Gama Pinto, an independence struggle politician who was assassinated in 1965. It is also worth spending some time in the Murumbi Peace Memorial Park. Joseph Murumbi was Kenya`s second Vice president and he is buried here beside his wife Sheila. He was a great lover of African art and there is a great collection of sculptures in the park celebrating this.
A Kei Apple maze or “Mtego wa panya” was one of the most iconic features and was a well-known destination for visitors but fell into disrepair and is now unusable. Kenya Horticulture Society have been involved in rehabilitating it but it is not yet operational again.
The centre of the park is a cultivated area with green lawns, flower beds, a lily pond and centrally a band stand. Hawkers sell snacks and drinks around the park and there are small activities for children such as push cars.
Another very noticeable area of the park are the monkeys! Home to thousands of vervet and Sykes monkey, they are very 'friendly' and will try and part you from your picnics. Don't let this dissuade you, come with a picnic, a blanket and some good friends. Its a lovely place to spend an afternoon. Take a walk along the hiking trails. Friends of City Park also offer free monthly nature walks which should resume in 2021. If you are interested in contact: cityparkfriends@naturekenya.org
In 2020, the management of City Park was given to Kenya Forest Service. The KFS will be working in partnership with, among others, the National Environment Management Authority, which will be responsible for waste and air pollution management in the park.
The Kenya Forestry Research Institute (Kefri) will be in charge of research and development and the National Museums of Kenya (NMK) will establish a module on the national botanical garden and are responsible for the protection of national heritage and historical sites within City Park.
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