The rapid accumulation of municipal solid waste in many developing countries has been linked to urbanization, population growth and low budgetary allocation for urban solid waste management. This study aims at determining the households’ willingness to pay for improved solid waste management to reduce air pollution in Nairobi, Kenya. In order to undertake the study, the sample of 114 households around the Dandora dumpsite in Nairobi was randomly selected from Dandora, Babadogo, Kariobangi North and Korogocho residential areas that were purposively selected. The technique employed in the assessment is a stated preference approach called contingent valuation method. Double-bounded model was used to identify the factors that influence the households’ willingness to pay for improved solid waste management. The results from this study show that the willingness to pay for households is significantly related to monthly income, gender of the household head, household size and education level of the household head. In addition, the results also reveal that gender of household head is negatively correlated with willingness to pay while monthly income, size of the household and education level of the household head are positively correlated with willingness to pay for improved solid waste management. The results of contingent valuation further reveal that the mean willingness to pay for improved solid waste management per household in order to reduce air pollution is Kshs. 237.14 per month. Therefore, there is need for policy makers to involve the urban households in managing municipal solid waste for sustainable environmental protection in the developing countries.

Keywords: Air pollution, contingent valuation method, double-bounded model, municipal solid waste, and willingness to pay.