The trajectories of survival of the Mungiki Youth in Nairobi

Abstract

The numerous socio-economic challenges facing the youth in developing nations today have meant that youth must find new approaches to address these challenges and utilize what is available in their surroundings to enable them survive. This is especially the case in the congested, poor living conditions of the sub-urban regions. In most of the developing nations, youth burgeon has been associated with increased crime in both urban and rural areas, activities that can be linked to unemployment and low literacy levels. In their effort to live within the limits of their surroundings, some youth in Kenya have formed groups, within which they identify and pool their efforts for wider recognition, besides enhancing their survival techniques in the midst of economic hardships. Some of these groups have been labelled as gangs, criminal groups and dangerous sects. Members of these groups, therefore, do not readily negotiate livelihoods with the general public but rather with their sect leaders, and they are sometimes known to make deals with political leaders to protect their interests. Youth gangs may function as residual social institutions when other institutions fail, and provide a certain degree of satisfaction, order and solidarity for their members. Such gangs are present in both socialist and free-market societies and in both developing and developed countries. To exemplify, the Japanese Yazuka, the Chinese Triads, and the Italian Mafia are organized criminal gangs with youth street affiliates or aspirants (Irving 1990: 172). Youth and children have been linked to some of these groups. For instance, the Japanese Ministry of Justice reports that 52,275 …