According to the 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census, Embakasi recorded a population of about 988,808 residents, making it not only the largest sub‑county in Nairobi by total population but also the most densely populated area within the county. A large share of this population lives in informal settlements such as Mukuru Kwa Njenga, Kware, Pipeline, Tajirika (Tassia), and parts of Viwandani and Dandora, which are packed with single‑room dwellings and multi‑family units.
Why Embakasi is the densest
Several factors concentrate so many people in Embakasi:
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High‑demand informal housing: Strong demand for cheap accommodation near the city centre drives massive informal‑settlement growth.
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Proximity to industrial and CBD areas: Embakasi borders the Industrial Area and parts of the central business district, attracting low‑income workers seeking affordable rents.
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Established land‑use and historical growth: Decades of unplanned and semi‑planned development have turned much of Embakasi into a continuous high‑density urban belt.
How its density compares
When compared with other Nairobi sub‑counties:
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Mathare is much smaller in area (about 3 km²) and also extremely dense, but its total population is lower than Embakasi’s, so Embakasi ranks as the most densely populated overall in absolute‑numbers terms.
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Kamukunji, Makadara, and Kibra likewise exhibit very high density because of their small surface area and large populations, yet they still trail Embakasi in total people‑per‑square‑kilometre at the sub‑county scale.
In policy and planning discussions, Embakasi is regularly cited as Nairobi’s most densely populated sub‑county, and this density directly shapes where the county government prioritises housing, water, sanitation, and health‑service investments.
