When Aga Khan gave up his building to house The Africa Club
The Africa Club, formerly known as the Aga Khan Dispensary, in a picture taken on February 8, 2025. (Inset) His Highness the Aga Khan.
When it was known as the Aga Khan Dispensary – on the junction of Monrovia Street and today’s Moi Avenue – the building, though modest, was a beehive of activity. It offered healthcare at a time resources were scarce.
However, as the Aga Khan Dispensary expanded into a hospital and moved to its current location in Parklands, the building was repurposed, thanks to the Aga Khan’s generosity, into The Africa Club, a pioneering meeting point.
Soon, the space became a vibrant hub where the intellectual and political elite of Kenya and other African countries gathered to discuss the future of the continent and shape the course of history.
The fortunes of The Africa Club took a turn in 1968 when the Aga Khan transferred the title of the property to the trustees of the club – Duncan Ndegwa, James Nesbitt and Bethwell Gecaga. The three were present when Sir Ebo Pirbhai, the then-chairman of the Board of Governors of the Aga Khan Hospital, officially handed over the title deed on July 16, 1968.
While this moment was a triumph for the club, it was also the Aga Khan’s contribution to solidifying unity of a circle that had the mandate to run the country.
During its halcyon days, The Africa Club was not merely a social venue, but a veritable salon for the intellectual elites. Its membership read like a roll-call of the nation’s political and business elite – Jomo Kenyatta, Mwai Kibaki, Daniel arap Moi, JM Kariuki, Tom Mboya, Charles Njonjo, Oginga Odinga, Joseph Murumbi, Gikonyo Kiano, Argwings Kodhek – towering figures in the shaping of Kenya’s future.
The club was a haven for the literati, a place intellectuals, politicians and entrepreneurs coalesced, weaving a fabric of ambition, aspiration and vision for Kenya’s future.
The club was founded out of necessity by graduates of Western universities and Makerere College.
As these men and women found themselves barred from entering any of the Whites-only and Asian clubs in Nairobi – apart from United Kenya Club – they turned to meeting in downtown bars or at Samson Mwathi’s office.
Mwathi, little known today, was one of the first African doctors in Kenya. He was also a fellow of the American College of Physicians and Surgeons and was instrumental in bringing the club’s membership together.
To register with the colonial government, the objectives of the club were carefully limited to “seeking to promote and foster cultural contacts among Africans”. Its political role would be undeniable over time.
President Jomo Kenyatta delivers a speech during the opening of Nairobi Serena in 1976. Looking on is His Highness the Aga Khan.
When Aga Khan Dispensary left the space, Mwathi and a team that included Gichuru, Mboya, Mareka Gecaga, Duncan Ndegwa and Nesbitt approached the Aga Khan to lease the premises as “African Club”. The Aga Khan agreed to lease the building to the club for a nominal “peppercorn rent” in 1961. That year, Jomo Kenyatta was freed from restriction in Maralal and was quickly welcomed into the club. After he was appointed Minister for Constitutional Affairs and Economic Planning, Kenyatta not only gave the club his blessing but was also present for its opening on October 5, 1962.
With Kenyatta’s support, membership surged, and the name changed from “African Club” to “The Africa Club” to reflect its more inclusive, multi-racial membership. The objectives expanded to include providing social, cultural and recreational activities.
It became a hub for intellectual discussion, socialising and even charity. The modest facilities were well-utilised. It could accommodate 150 people and had a committee room, bar and space for tennis, darts and billiards. Monthly dances, cinema shows and talks from visiting guests added to its cultural dynamism.
At its height, The Africa Club rivalled The United Kenya Club near the University of Nairobi hostels. Both attracted a similar calibre of membership.
Later, the Aga Khan started a process of bequeathing the property to the club. One writer described The Africa Club as an “effervescence of nationalism bubbling out of the years of conflict during the Emergency”.
The fortunes of the club took a turn in 1968 when the Aga Khan finally transferred the title of the property to the trustees.
His Highness the Aga Khan (centre) with Nation's top management at the newspaper's printing press in Nairobi.
The Africa Club lived to its name and was for some years the epicentre of Kenya’s political pulse.
Here, political ambition and entrepreneurial spirit were not merely coexisting; they were flourishing in tandem, each feeding the other, creating an environment that birthed ideas, formed alliances and set the course of the nation. The entrance fee was set at Sh20, with an annual subscription of Sh60.
It was initially made up largely of university graduates but began to admit other figures from Kenya’s elite over time. Among these were a few Whites like Brian Hobson, the East African Breweries MD and an avid tennis player. The club attracted boardroom figures too.
His Highness Prince Karim Aga Khan, the spiritual leader of the Shia Ismaili Muslims with Mzee Jomo Kenyatta and Mama Ngina Kenyatta.
At one point, its committee included millionaire Chris Kahara, Nairobi Town Clerk SJ Getonga and Permanent Secretary RR Koske. Dr Mwathi remained the club president for years, a testament to his central role in its creation.
Despite the celebratory gesture, the club’s subsequent years were marked by challenges that would see its decline. As the years passed, the facilities – once vibrant and functional – began to show the wear of time. Its members were increasingly drawn to more modern and exclusive venues, previously reserved for White settlers and colonial administrators. The allure of golf, an activity deemed more fashionable and prestigious than the popular Africa Club’s tennis, enticed many members to seek out more upmarket clubs that could provide them with the newest in leisure and recreation.
After 18 years of operation, The Africa Club closed its doors in 1980.
In March 1994, the trustees – Ndegwa, Nesbitt and Gecaga – surrendered the property to the government, registering the grant under I.R. 3345/1 with Registrar of Titles, JW Munjuga. Originally issued on June 6, 1903, the lease of the land was for 99 years, but with its expiration in 2002, the building has fallen into disuse after controversy. Left abandoned, it has become a silent monument to a past era.
Mr Zaher, head of the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development, exchanges notes with Mr Elias Musyoka, managing director of Kenya Tourist Development Corporation, after signing an agreement that will enable the public to buy shares in Serena Lodge and Properties Limited. Looking on is Finance Minister Musalia Mudavadi.
As a history site, plot 209/930 is one of the forgotten spaces the Aga Khan contributed in building a cohesive political environment.
For several decades, the building has stood under lock and key, a relic of a bygone era. Unused and nearly derelict, its glass and wooden doors remain shut, while dust continues to accumulate in the stillness.
The Africa Club may no longer exist, but its legacy remains embedded in the careers of the men and women who passed through it.
Yet, as the building withers, its place in the national memory continues to fade, along with the elite networks it fostered.
@johnkamau1