Some 14 informal settlements in Nairobi are set to benefit from a Sh31.7 billion slum upgrading programme.
Most slum dwellers are hawkers, watchmen, house helpers, cart pushers and water vendors.
They live from hand to mouth and lack basic amenities.
The multilaterals are upgrading the slums under the Kenya Informal Settlement Improvement Programme.
They include the World Bank and the French Development Agency.
The 14 slums are among the 400 informal settlements spread across urban centres in 33 counties nationwide earmarked for improvement.
The programme involves developing houses and improving basic social amenities, such as roads, lighting and provision of clean water and sanitation.
It also introduces metered electricity and improves playgrounds and markets.
In return, the governments, both national and county, would benefit through enhanced land rate collections, metered water and electricity.
The programme also aims to reduce crime and enhance economic activities from such settlements.
The residents are expected to get the security of tenure of land they occupy, enhanced dignity and investment opportunities in their neighbourhoods.
The World Bank is contributing $150 million (Sh24.1 billion), while French Development Agency (AFD) is pumping 43 million Euros (Sh7.6 billion).
The programme runs until July 2028.
Speaking in Nairobi during a three-day stakeholder participation forum, residents demanded to be considered in not only providing labour but also being picked to supply construction materials.
Through their elected officials under the Settlement Executive Committees, they formed groups to work on the projects.
“We have formed women groups, youth groups and community-based organisations that would ensure a significant portion of the project goes towards empowering the locals,” Ex-Grogon Settlement Executive Committee member Jacinta Wangari said.
They further urged the government to lower the deposit of individual housing units from 10 per cent to 2 per cent to enable as many residents as possible to secure the units.
They also pleaded with the government to increase the payment period further to accommodate their small earnings.
The settlements visited include Ex-Grogon in Huruma, Kimaiko ward, where 98 households are living on one acre.
Another was Carton City between Buruburu and Nairobi River, which has a population of 30,000 people.
Others include Manjengo in Pumwani ward, which has a population of 300,000, sitting on 60 acres.