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Mathare
Suburb in Nairobi, Kenya

Mathare

Mathare is a collection of slums in Nairobi with a population of approximately 500,000 people; the population of Mathare Valley alone, the oldest of the slums that make up Mathare, is 180,000 people.

Plan a trip to Mathare→From Eldoret

Mathare is the home of football teams Mathare United and Real Mathare of the MYSA. Mathare is currently part of two electoral constituencies; the titular Mathare Constituency and the northern part being in Ruaraka Constituency. The northern part was initially part of Kasarani Constituency up to the 2013 elections when Kasarani was split into three electoral constituencies; Ruaraka being among them. The southern part was domiciled in Starehe Constituency.

How locals move

Getting around Mathare the local way

  • Get inMatatus (11- to 18-seater minibuses) and shuttles (6-seater cars) are convenient, inexpensive (and often the only) modes of public transport for connecting Nairobi with towns and tourist destinations in the Rift Valley and Central Highlands such as Naivasha, Nyeri, Nanyuki, Isiolo, and Thika.
  • Get inMatatus can be obtained from the River Road area.
  • Get inExtreme caution should be exercised in this area because petty theft is a major concern; avoid showing valuables such as mobile phones, even while in the matatu (see safety section below).
  • Get inThe best method of connecting to a matatu is to arrange for a taxi to drop you off and pick you up directly at the location of the matatu that you are boarding or alighting from.
  • Get inIf you're boarding a matatu from Nairobi, tell the taxi driver your destination and they will drop you off at the correct location.
  • Get inIf you are being picked up, then tell the taxi driver the location you're coming from as well as the matatu company that you are using (your ticket should have the operator's name).
  • Get aroundThe driver and fuel are charged separately with some companies requiring that you hire a driver if you are taking a large 4X4/4WD (e.g.
  • Get aroundHere are some reliable car hire companies in Kenya: Nairobi Car Hire offer good services for 4x4 and other categories of cars.

From Wikivoyage: Nairobi, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us. Last edited 2026-09.

Text adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photograph: Queen Asali (see Commons), Wikimedia Commons.