The Triangle of Mistrust: A Utility's Struggle to Engage Effectively in the Informal Settlements of Nairobi

“Water is life”. During the past decade this phrase has been used repeatedly to emphasize the importance of a number of issues surrounding water services provision including, supply, distribution, governance and political will. This research seeks to investigate the Nairobi City Water and Sewerage Company (NCWSC), a water utility in Kenya, which faces the monumental task of providing water and sanitation services to some of Sub-Saharan Africa’s, biggest and most densely populated informal settlements (slums). The research focuses on the tumultuous relationship between the utility, small scale independent providers (SSIP’s)and the community living and operating in the informal settlements of Nairobi and further examines how the utility has tried to improve that relationship since the national water reforms of 2002. Through the utilization of a number of qualitative methods, and close examination of the interactions between the three previously mentioned parties, a concept called the “Triangle of Mistrust” was coined. The research contends that it is the utility’s responsibility to bridge the Triangle of Mistrust, and only through partnership and cooperation within the Triangle, can the utility’s engagements in the informal settlements be successful