Chinese firms sign Sh20bn contract to build Soin-Koru dam
A woman carries a child on her shoulders as she wades through flood waters in Kobura after the Nyando river burst its banks. The Soin-Koru dam is expected to end the problem.
The government is finally set to deliver on a six-decade plan to build the Soin-Koru multipurpose dam after awarding a Sh20 billion tender to two Chinese firms last Thursday.
The inking of the deal now gives room to the National Water Harvesting and Storage Authority (NWHSA) to start the project, which is expected to end flooding that has caused loss of lives, property and livestock.
NWHSA chief executive officer Sharon Obonyo said China Jiangxi international Kenya Limited and China Jiangxi International Economic and Technical Cooperation Company will undertake the work.
The project is expected to reduce sediment formation downstream, which is the main cause of flooding, and regulate Nyando River flow, thus providing water for irrigation all year round.
The proposed dam will also supply water for domestic use, and hydroelectric power generation, and offer opportunities in fishing and water-based tourism.
With a storage capacity of 93.7 million cubic metres, the dam will supply 72 million litres of water per day for domestic use, irrigation of 2,570 hectares and generation of 2.5MW of hydropower.
“The project will supply portable water to parts of Kisumu and Kericho counties. It will also provide water for irrigation in the lower areas of Awasi and Ahero, hence economic activities like irrigated farming will be more vibrant in these areas,” she said.
The implementation of Vision 2030 flagship project that runs from the slopes of Got Alila in Muhoroni and the slopes of Koitatui hill in Soin, Kericho County, marks a key mileage in President Uhuru Kenyatta’s legacy as he is expected to exit office in the next two months.
For several decades, residents of Nyando and Nyakach have suffered the effects of floods. Every time it pours on the hills of Nandi, residents of the Nyando basin know it is time to pack and leave their homes, albeit temporarily. The situation could have been solved 60 years ago had the government executed plans to construct the Koru-Soin dam.
Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga last year blamed the prolonged delay to vested and selfish political interests. “The construction of the dam was initially scheduled to be done by Russians, but the plan was scuttled by the late Tom Mboya, who had a political difference with Jaramogi Oginga Odinga. “Unfortunately, his intention to work with America saw its roll-out totally flop as it failed to address the critical components of the project,” he said, while presiding over the groundbreaking of Raila Odinga Secondary School in Nyando.
The multipurpose dam will also support existing irrigation schemes of Ahero and West Kano and enhance rice production and horticulture farming.
Former Water and Irrigation Principal Secretary Joseph Irungu said the delays were due to an elaborate programme by the National Lands Commission to follow due process and ensure the success of the mega project.
With a Sh2 billion payout claim to resettle the affected people on both sides of the dam, the government hived out 206 parcels of land in Kisumu and another 110 in neighbouring Kericho County.
