Counties unite to end water shortage
What you need to know:
- “We need to centralise our water management systems and hand them over to people who can professionally run them to reduce costs,” she said.
- The plans include the building of multi-purpose dams as well as the merging of all water management firms in each of the four devolved units — Kisumu, Homa Bay, Siaya, Busia and Kitui.
- “Multi-purpose dams are the way to go, although they are expensive. Through these projects, we can achieve the dream of equitable water for all,” he said.
Four county governments have stepped up efforts to end water shortages in their regions.
The plans include the building of multi-purpose dams as well as the merging of all water management firms in each of the four devolved units — Kisumu, Homa Bay, Siaya, Busia and Kitui.
The counties want to ensure that all houses are supplied with tap water in the next five years.
Kisumu Governor Jack Ranguma, and county water executives Sarah Ondego (Siaya), Benard Yaite (Busia), Jacob Mwandikwa (Kitui) and Consolata Yambo (Homa Bay) Monday said the plans would ensure they manage all the water resources better.
They spoke during a national water conference in Kisumu.
The officials said the counties spend a lot of money on health owing to the increase in the number of water- borne diseases.
Besides providing water for domestic use, said Mr Ranguma, the multi-purpose dams will also be used to generate power.
“Multi-purpose dams are the way to go, although they are expensive. Through these projects, we can achieve the dream of equitable water for all,” he said.
The governor said counties should incorporate the plan in their integrated development strategies. We also need to come up with strategies to reduce loss of water through leaks, theft and meter faults, which currently stands at over 50 per cent, he added.
IMPROVE THE SERVICE
Ms Ondego said they intend to partner with investors to improve the services in counties.
She said merging of water management agencies into one entity was important for achieving Vision 2030 goals at the grassroots.
“We need to centralise our water management systems and hand them over to people who can professionally run them to reduce costs,” she said.
Ms Yambo said counties were in a better position to understand the needs of people at the grassroots.
“We are committed to ensuring the plan succeeds as we want to improve water provision,” she said.
Mr Mwandike said the shortage of resources had hindered efforts by counties to provide clean water to residents.
“As counties, we want to take the lead and ensure that we achieve the Vision 2030 goal of improving access to water services for all residents,” he said.
Mr Yaite said they were committed to achieving in one year what the national government had failed to realise in 50 years.
