Initiatives by the government to boost national water security

I am delighted to join Kenyans and the rest of the World to celebrate the 28^th edition of the World Water Day. This is an annual UN observance that advocates for sustainable management and development of freshwater resources. The day focuses public attention on critical water issues and the activities the Government and stakeholders are undertaking in the Water Sector.

The theme for this year, “Valuing Water”, is very timely and well aligned to the aspirations of the Constitution 2010, Vision 2030 and the UN Sustainable Development Goal 6, with special reference to the UN Decade for Water (2018-2028); all of which envisage universal access to water and reasonable sanitation by the year 2030.

The value of water is much more than its price. Water has enormous and complex value for our households, food, culture, health, education, economics and the integrity of our natural environment.

The current level of access in Kenya is estimated at a national average of 64 percent for water and 26 percent for sanitation in urban areas. Non-revenue water is at 41 percent and the annual water per capita is less than 500 cubic metres, making Kenya a severe water stress nation, according to the UN global scale on water security, which stipulates a minimum of 1,000m³ per person per year. To address this situation, the Government, through this Ministry, is undertaking major water, sanitation and irrigation projects, including policy, Governance and legal interventions, to increase water storage, and improve sanitation and food security in the country.

As the country endeavours to achieve the right to clean and safe water in adequate quantities, there is a need to recognise that water resources in Kenya are not evenly distributed.  Inter-basin transfers of water is therefore very important and it can be achieved through effective public participation and prudent sharing of the water resources to equally benefit all, while addressing conflicts that inevitably arise from competing users.

The Ministry has developed a National Water Policy, which has received Cabinet approval. The key policy direction includes progressive realisation of universal access to water; management, conservation and protection of water resources; and rehabilitation of riparian and catchment areas to eliminate pollution of water bodies. The policy also emphasises on comprehensive sector financing and investment between the county and national governments.

Further, the Ministry has developed Water and Sanitation Strategy, Water Resources Management Strategy and Water Harvesting and Storage Strategy, which are aimed at actualising the policy and improving water service provision in the country.

The Constitution of Kenya 2010, in Article 43 (1), (b), (c), (d), guarantees reasonable standard of sanitation, freedom from hunger, and safe water in adequate quantities. In this regard, the Government continues to implement key projects across the country. Some of these are: Nairobi Northern Collector Tunnel Water Supply project to boost available water to Nairobi City residents by 140,000m³ per day; Thwake dam, which will supply 150,000m³ per day; Narok sewerage; Olkalau sewerage in Nyandarua; Marsabit sewerage; Mandera sewerage; Oyugis and Kendu bay water projects; Mavoko Drinking Water Supply project targeting to reach 1.5 million people in the area with clean water; Vihiga Cluster Water supply project to increase water by 12,500m³ per day to serve Maseno, Mbale and Kaimosi; Homa Bay Cluster Water project to supply 9,000m³ per day of water to serve 120,000 people in Homa Bay Town and its environs; and Chemususu dam Water Project to supply 6,000m³ per day to Eldama Ravine, Mogotio and parts of Nakuru.

Others include Kenya Towns Water and Sanitation Project to increase water access in 28 towns across the country, and Water and Sanitation Development Programme being implemented in six counties, namely: Mombasa, Wajir, Garissa, Kwale, Kilifi and Taita Taveta.

Currently, the Government is implementing 685 Water, Sanitation and Irrigation projects. Key among these are sanitation projects in Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu. They are being implemented on the sites which had been illegally allocated, but have since been recovered.

In addition, the Ministry is contributing to H.E the President’s Big Four Agenda by implementing projects aimed at enabling Manufacturing, Food Security, Universal Health Coverage and Affordable Housing. Some of these are Dongo Kundu EPZ in Mombasa, Konza Techno City, Naivasha Industrial Park and Constituency Industrial Development Centres across the country. The Ministry also targets to increase the area under irrigation by 190,000 hectares from 510,000 in 2019 to 700,000 by the year 2022.

According to the Water Master Plan, the infrastructure development for water and sanitation requires an annual budget of Ksh100 billion from 2013 to 2030. However, the available budget has been Ksh40 billion, up to 2018/2019. From 2019 to currently, the available budget has increased to Ksh60 billion. This requires comprehensive investment planning and financing between the national government and county governments to ensure value for money as well avoidance of duplication in investments and interventions. In this regard, the Ministry is in the process of gazetting a national water and sanitation investment planning taskforce to identify all interventions required for investments and financing to achieve the sector’s desired targets.

Cognizant of the impact posed by the COVID-19 pandemic in the provision of water and sanitation services across the country, the Government invested Ksh1.62 billion to drill and equip 193 boreholes and construct 193 elevated steel water tanks to supply 33 million litres per day of water to enable 1.6 million residents access free water in the informal settlements in Nairobi. The Government will invest a further Ksh5 billion through the World Bank, to extend a conditional liquidity support grant to assist Water Utilities meet their operational and minor capital expenditures and enable them to recover from the impact of the pandemic.