Paper short abstract:

Disability debates within small cities have been sparse. By looking at disability in informal settlements of Eldoret, Kenya, this study explores the lived realities of PwDs based on their informal housing practices thereby defining possible solutions leading to inclusive development

Paper long abstract:

This research paper is aimed at situating the geography of disability within analyses of urban informality for a more nuanced understanding leading to holistic housing improvement initiatives in Eldoret, Kenya. Arguably, there has been a limited scholarly focus on the voices of PwDs in informal settlements in secondary cities of the Global South including Eldoret. Yet, understanding their priorities is critical for a broader and all-inclusive decision-making processes. This study contributes to that understanding from a disability lens through capturing the agency of people with disabilities (PwDs) and the structural forces that make it difficult for them and their families to have decent housing conditions in urban informal settlements. The study draws on critical disability theory (CDT) and intersectionality as the main conceptual underpinnings. Through a qualitative case-study approach, the study explores three informal settlements in Eldoret using interviews, observation, transect walks and document reviews. The research study finds that PwDs encounter frequent evictions due to unsecure tenure, live in small-sized houses that are crowded, have limited housing choices and lastly are rendered homeless in many instances. In espousing these everyday housing experiences of PwDs and by extension their caregivers, the study sheds more light on the disability research agenda leading into sound solutions for nuanced urban processes in the Global South. To this end, the study will imply to policies that are driven towards inclusive housing spaces, which enshrine the agency of PwDs such as slum upgrading initiatives and affordable housing programmes in Kenya and beyond.