Vihiga County Government intends to collaborate with development partners in an effort to facilitate provision of clean and safe water drinking water to the residents.
The Governor-elect Dr. Wilber Ottichilo said plans were underway to ensure that at least 70 percent of the residents have access to clean and safe water in the next two years.
Dr. Ottichilo lamented that the people have in the past been using water from unprotected wells which posed a threat to their health.
He said this while meeting a delegation from Water Is Life (WIL), a non-governmental organization, paid him a courtesy call on Friday.
He stated that his administration has completed and commissioned Buhani water project in Mungoma ward in Vihiga sub county.
The county head explained that the project has a 105,000-litre reservoir stationed in North Maragoli hills from where the water moves by gravity to reach the residents.
He pointed out that he commissioned another such project in June this year in Ipali ward of Emuhaya sub county that has connected about 100 households to piped water.
“Access to clean and safe water is one of my government’s priorities and our aim is to ensure that every household in the county is connected with tap water to relieve them of the burden of walking long distances to fetch water from wells and rivers,” he stated.
The residents, just like many in other parts of the country, have for a long time been drawing water from unprotected wells.
The organization’s operations manager Nancy Sikuku, who led the delegation, said they were going to sink bore holes in various parts of the county.
“In order to ensure steady supply of the water, we shall install solar power for pumping the commodity from underground thereby cutting the operation costs that would arise from using electricity,” she stated.
She added that the water projects would promote food security through irrigation of crops on the farms.
By Sammy Mwibanda
