"Slum tourism" stirs controversy in Kenya

NAIROBI, Feb 10 (Reuters) It's the de rigeur stop off for caring foreign dignitaries. It reached a worldwide audience as a backdrop to the British blockbuster ''The Constant Gardener''.

Any journalist wanting a quick Africa poverty story can find it there in half an hour. And now at least one travel agency offers tours round Kenya's Kibera slum, one of Africa's largest.

''People are getting tired of the Maasai Mara and wildlife.

No one is enlightening us about other issues. So I've come up with a new thing -- slum tours,'' enthused James Asudi, general manager of Kenyan-based Victoria Safaris.

But not everyone in Kenya is waxing so lyrical about the trail of one-day visitors treading the rubbish-strewn paths, sampling the sewage smell, and photographing the tin-roof shacks that house 800,000 of the nation's poorest in a Nairobi valley.

Indeed, the recent well-meaning visit of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon -- coming hard on the heels of other foreign celebrities including even US comedian Chris Rock -- drew a stern editorial from Kenya's leading newspaper.

''What is this fascination with Kibera among people who do not know what real poverty means?'' asked the Daily Nation.

''More to the point, how do Kenyans themselves feel about this back-handed compliment as the custodians of backwardness, filth, misery and absolute deprivation?'' Answer: Not a lot, at least according to an informal, random survey by this correspondent in Kibera itself.

While all recognise the potential for good from such attention, plus the pressure it puts on the government and others to help slum-dwellers, most said tangible benefits so far were few, while the embarrassment factor was growing every day.

''They see us like puppets, they want to come and take pictures, have a little walk, tell their friends they've been to the worst slum in Africa,'' said car-wash worker David Kabala.

''But nothing changes for us. If someone comes, let him do something for us. Or if they really want to know how we think and feel, come and spend a night, or walk round when it's pouring with rain here and the paths are like rivers.'' ''PITY TOURS'' Even groups working day-in, day-out in Kibera -- and dependent on foreign funding -- are getting weary.

Salim Mohamed, project director for the Carolina for Kibera charity, said the stream of high-profile visits to the 3 km-long corridor was raising expectations among residents which, when not quickly fulfilled, fuelled frustration with the appalling living conditions.

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