Nakuru County Government has prioritized investments in water infrastructure, with a focus on integrating advanced technologies and materials that would ensure sustainability and resilience.
Deputy Governor David Kones indicated that the County’s collaboration with the national government agencies, development partners, Non-Governmental Organizations and the private sector had significantly improved water supply infrastructure ensuring more residents access the essential resource.
Kones said the county government had renewed focus on improving water supply infrastructure through projects like drilling and rehabilitating boreholes, expanding pipelines, and promoting water-sensitive urban design, aiming to address water scarcity and improve access to clean water.
The Deputy Governor pointed out that as the County endeavoured to achieve the right to clean and safe water in adequate quantities, there was need to recognize and implement the requirements of the Constitution of Kenya 2010, Article 43 (1), (b), (c), (d) provision which guarantees reasonable standard of sanitation, freedom from hunger, and safe water in adequate quantities.
He disclosed that in the past two years, they had successfully connected 15,500 new households to clean and safe drinking water having drilled and equipped over 60 boreholes, an initiative he said had directly benefitted 77,500 people.
He added that to enhance their sustainability, Governor Susan Kihika’s administration had solarized 45 boreholes, constructed 23 water kiosks, protected 13 springs across all the 11 Sub-Counties and supplied 43 tanks with a total capacity 1,580,000 liters.
The Deputy Governor spoke when he commissioned a new, state-of-the-art Water Drilling Rig which he said would enable the drilling of an additional 70 boreholes in the region over the next two years, bringing the total to 130 boreholes.
Kones voiced Governor Kihika’s administration commitment to expanding the scope of water coverage, enhancing sustainability of projects and understanding the role of every stakeholder in water, environment, sanitation and climate change sectors adding that they were offering support to water utilities to ensure proper management of water projects which in turn will translate into good service delivery.
He also announced that the devolved unit was entering into public-private partnerships aimed at revamping its aged wastewater treatment and sewerage systems adding that the wastewater treatment and sewerage systems upgrade dubbed the ‘The Lake Nakuru Biodiversity Conservation Project’ would be funded through a Sh5.6 billion grant from the German Development Bank.
The Lake Nakuru Biodiversity Conservation Project’ will encompass increasing water supply through new boreholes, rehabilitation of water reticulation systems and revitalization of pipelines, optimization of existing well fields and construction of water reservoirs.
The five-year project will be implemented by the Central Rift Valley Water Works Development Agency jointly with the Nakuru County Government.
The Deputy Governor indicated that one of the highlights of the mega project would be the decommissioning of the 63-year-old Kaloleni Waste Water Treatment Plant, which wold be phased out and its waste directed to the upgraded Njoro Treatment Works which has the capacity to process 20,000 cubic meters of water per day.
Kones said the County administration was also undertaking policy, governance and legal interventions, to increase water storage and improve sanitation.
He highlighted the Drilling Rig’s efficiency, stating that it would reduce borehole drilling costs by 30 percent and that the equipment was capable of drilling over 10 boreholes per month to depths of 450 meters, adding that this would significantly alleviate water scarcity in the 11 Sub-Counties.
Kones noted that the County has expanded the water network through more than 100 water projects covering a total of 407 kilometers thereby increasing the population accessing clean and safe drinking water in Nakuru County to 62.3 percent.
He indicated that fixing the water demand and supply gap would reduce production costs and spur investment and job creation in the sector.
The Deputy Governor underscored the importance of collaboration in tackling water challenges adding that they were focused on strengthening their efforts in collaborating with stakeholders and finding innovative solutions to improve water access and hygiene standards.
Among the projects the county government has lined up to alleviate water shortage in Nakuru are the last mile water pipe connectivity to rural households from Itare Dam once its construction resumes and the expansion of Turasha Dam in Gilgil to bolster water supply to Gilgil Sub-County and Nakuru Town.
The county falls short of adequate daily water supply with the demand estimated to be 70,000 cubic metres per day. Data from Nakuru Urban Water and Sanitation Company, NAWASCO, indicates that the current supply stands at 40,000 cubic metres and with the town’s status already elevated to City status, partnerships among utilities and other government agencies were crucial to avoid rampant rationing.
The County Government has also partnered with Vitens Evides International which is provided technical assistance to the Nakuru Water and Sanitation Services Company Ltd (Nawassco), Nakuru Rural Water and Sanitation Company Limited (Naruwasco) and Naivasha Water, Sewerage and Sanitation Company Ltd (Naivawasco) to reduce non-revenue water from an average of 54 per cent to 20 per cent.
A Non-Revenue Water (NRW) audit revealed that Nawassco, Naruwasco and Naivawasco lose more than half of their treated drinking water to leaks, theft and meter inaccuracies, resulting in monthly losses of over Sh40 million and scarcity of the commodity.
Non-Revenue Water (NRW) refers to water lost through illegal connections, inefficient or rundown supply infrastructure and malfunctioning meters. Water Services and Regulatory Board (WASREB) defines levels of NRW of under 20 per cent as good, 20-25 as acceptable and over 25 per cent as not acceptable.
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that sub-Saharan Africa loses an equivalent of four percent of its GDP as a result of inadequate water supply and sanitation. Part of this is made up of the heavy disease burden occasioned by diseases linked to water and sanitation challenges.
By Esther Mwangi
