NAIROBI, KENYA — Families in Nairobi will soon face the necessity of seeking burial grounds in adjacent counties, as the Ministry of Health is advocating for the closure of Lang’ata Cemetery.
A task force established to evaluate the 100-acre graveyard has concluded that the site reached its capacity two decades ago, and its ongoing use presents significant health hazards to the residents of Nairobi.
The committee has recommended an immediate cessation of burial practices involving shallow graves and the interment of bodies on top of existing remains.
Lang’ata Cemetery, the city’s primary burial ground, has been operating beyond its capacity for several years, with a continuous influx of deceased individuals arriving daily for interment.
This persistent demand often necessitates burials at depths shallower than the standard six feet, leaving grieving families, particularly those with limited financial resources, with few viable alternatives.
Despite being officially declared full as early as 2008, according to Michael Mutugi, a supervisor with 30 years of experience at Lang’ata, the cemetery continues to accommodate new burials out of necessity.
For many Nairobians, the preferred option would be to bury their deceased in their ancestral home villages up-country. However, the considerable costs associated with transportation and other funeral expenses render this option unattainable for a significant portion of the population.
Lang’ata Cemetery is informally divided into “permanent” and “temporary” sections. Plots in the permanent section, which offer the option of being “cemented in” to deter grave robbers, range in cost from approximately $147 for an infant to $300 for an adult.
These prices, however, remain prohibitive for many low-income families. As a result, a large number of Nairobi’s poor are forced to choose burial in a temporary grave, which costs up to $82. Graves in this section are routinely flattened, often within five years or less, to create space for more burials.
Critically, no official records are maintained in the temporary section, and families are not permitted to visit the graves after the burial.
Since its opening in 1958, Lang’ata Cemetery has been the final resting place for tens of thousands of individuals. As Nairobi’s population continues its upward trajectory, currently estimated at 5,767,000, the strain on this already overburdened cemetery will only intensify, highlighting the urgent need for a sustainable and dignified solution to the city’s burial needs.
