On Thursday, 21st August, 2025, Kenya’s cultural conversation took a turn when cabinet secretary for Culture, Arts and Heritage Hanna Cheptumo, alongside principal secretary Ummi Bashir, confirmed plans to relocate the Kenya National Archives from its iconic spot at Moi Avenue, Nairobi CBD. The goal? A safer, calmer, and more research-friendly location. Think limited traffic, better parking, and a setting where history doesn’t compete with city noise.
For decades, the towering granite building, once a bank, has stood as a landmark at the edge of the city center, its doors open to students, researchers, and curious visitors. It has also served as a landmark and meeting point for both newbies and seasoned Nairobians. But as Nairobi has grown louder and busier, the Archives has found itself squeezed into an increasingly chaotic setting sandwiched between traffic, vendors, and the constant hum of the city.
Why the move now?
The decision comes at a crucial moment. The return of over 300,000 digitized colonial-era records from the UK has amplified the urgency for a secure and modern facility. Experts also warn that fluctuating humidity, urban pollution, and limited space in the CBD location have been accelerating document degradation.
According to the Ministry, relocation is about more than convenience. It’s about preservation, accessibility, and dignity. By moving the Archives, Kenya can safeguard fragile manuscripts, create better spaces for researchers, and offer visitors an immersive cultural experience that rivals world-class facilities.
What the Relocation Could Mean
Relocating the Archives isn’t just a physical move; it’s a cultural reset. Imagine:
- Modern Research Facility: digitization labs, lecture spaces, and climate-controlled vaults to protect fragile records.
- Visitor-Friendly Experiences: interactive exhibitions, guided tours, cafes, and children’s history programs.
- Tourism Magnet: positioned alongside museums or heritage hubs, the new Archives could join Nairobi National Museum or Uhuru Gardens in attracting cultural tourism.
- Public Memory Hub: safer storage for artifacts and the Murumbi Gallery, one of Africa’s most important art collections.
Where could the Archives go?
The Ministry has not confirmed the new site, but Uhuru Gardens is a strong contender, offering both symbolic and practical advantages. As Kenya’s independence memorial, it provides a fitting backdrop for the Archives. However, some argue that its distance from the city center may limit daily access for students and researchers.
Other suggested sites include Museum Hill (for cultural clustering near Nairobi National Museum) and Karen, which offers serene grounds but raises questions of accessibility.
Globally, this isn’t new. France moved its National Archives from central Paris to a modern suburb in 2013. South Africa has expanded its facilities post-apartheid. Kenya now faces the same balancing act: heritage vs. accessibility.
What It Means for Nairobi
This move won’t just change where history is kept — it will ripple across the city:
- Urban Planning: The CBD will lose one of its most recognizable cultural anchors. What replaces it could redefine Moi Avenue’s identity.
- Tourism: A modern archives facility could become part of curated heritage tours, boosting cultural tourism revenues.
- Education & Research: Universities and schools may find new opportunities for partnerships, exhibitions, and research access.
- Citizen Experience: Nairobians may lose a nostalgic landmark, but gain a richer, more interactive hub to engage with their history.
Looking Ahead
Since its birth in 1965, the National Archives has been more than shelves of dusty files. It’s a living memory of Kenya’s journey, from colonial struggles to independence and beyond.
Relocation is more than changing addresses. It’s about future-proofing Kenya’s story. In the next decade, the new facility could position Nairobi as Africa’s cultural capital — a place where global scholars, artists, and tourists converge to understand the continent’s history.
Nairobi may soon lose one of its most iconic CBD landmarks, but it will gain a modern, world-class hub for memory, research, and cultural pride.
History isn’t just being preserved, it’s moving forward, literally.
Stay tuned with www.visitnairobikenya.com for updates on where the new Archives will Relocate to, and what it means for the future of our city.