About 200 households in Lamu’s Mokowe area will benefit from a Sh.17 million collaborative project between the county government and the Water Sector Trust Fund to ensure each household has a toilet facility.
The water and sanitation projects comes as a welcome relief with less than 25 percent households in Lamu having access to a toilet.
The Sh.17 million water and sanitation project is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and is expected to run for the whole year in which the toilets should be completed.
Speaking to KNA during the signing of the agreement between the county government and the Water Fund, the Lamu County Governor, Fahim Twaha said that the project is a step forward for the county in terms of improving sanitation facilities in the area.
He further commended the Water Sector Trust Fund for funding the project in Lamu and specifically Mokowe which is an area where households are in dire need of these ablution facilities.
“Many residents in Lamu are poor and cannot afford to build such toilets, which in many instances expose them to cholera and typhoid outbreaks,” Twaha said.
Sentiments echoed by the Lamu Water and Sanitation Company CEO, Paul Wainaina who stated that the project is a welcome initiative that will further create awareness among locals within Mokowe over the need of toilets within their homes.
“We would like to urge the Water Fund to further facilitate such projects in other areas within Lamu, such as Hindi which have households that do not have proper toilets,” Wainaina said.
Each household that will benefit from the project will receive Sh.20,000 to build the toilet.
The Water Sector Trust Fund Programme Officer, Fresiah Muyuro urged the beneficiaries to adhere to the provisions given to ensure that proper facilities are built within their homestead as she addressed the beneficiaries.
Kuso Hussein, the Water Trust Fund Lamu County Representative revealed that so far seven toilets have been built.
One of the beneficiaries, Abdul Jillo hailed the initiative as a godsend, saying that he has suffered from cholera and typhoid outbreaks because of lack of a toilet within his homestead.
“My days of going to the bush to answer nature calls are over with the assistance we’ve been given by the Water Trust Fund,” Ramah Shukri, a Mokowe resident beneficiary said.
By Amenya Ochieng
