Wajir County sets aside Sh150 million emergency fund for drought

Wajir County has set aside a Sh150 million emergency fund to help in the fight against drought in parts of the county.

Some areas have already reported borehole breakdowns and also witnessed drying up of water pans and dams which are the main sources of water for pastoralist communities.

The current situation now threatens the livelihoods of people in the region who mostly depend on pastoralism for survival.

Addressing area residents, Wajir Governor Mohamed Abdi said weather forecasts indicate that parts of the Horn of Africa, including Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia, will get depressed rainfall.

Mr Abdi said that the current situation is likely to have a negative effect on the availability of pasture and water in the aid and semi-arid region.

The county boss said the situation may result in over-concentration of people and livestock in certain areas, hence causing conflicts among the pastoralist communities as they compete for the limited resources.

In the past, clashes between communities have been witnessed in the region due to drought resulting in loss of lives.

Mr Abdi says his administration will find ways of helping the communities in order to prevent occurrence of the same.

“To this effect, we have set aside Sh150 million which will help us in contingency planning. I believe this is a step in the right direction considering the current situation,” he said.

Affordable water

The governor called on the national government and other partners to step in and help the pastoralist communities as they brace themselves for drought.

On Tuesday, Mr Abdi flagged off seven water bowsers, 20 generators, one mounted crane and a tractor trailer under the Water and Sanitation Development Project (WSDP) - a partnership between Wajir and the World Bank.

The governor said the move is part of his agenda of ensuring residents have access to clean and affordable water.

Mr Abdi said the county is currently experiencing shortage of water.

"The present daily yield is about 1,000m3 against a demand of 4,400m3. With the current population of 110,729 which is expected to grow to 132,787 by 2022 and without immediate interventions, the already dire water situation in Wajir will grow into a crisis," he said.

Mr Abdi also said the county intends to fast-track development of a county contingency plan under the coordination of the Office of the County Secretary and the finance department in disaster preparedness.