Lake Victoria South Water Works Agency (LVSWWA) has embarked on a Sh92 million project to supply water to residents of the upper western corridor of Kisumu City.
The project funded by the national government targets to address water shortages at Riat Hills, Korando, Kogony and Kanyamedha areas which have experienced perennial water shortages.
Funded by the national government, the project targets to serve 50, 000 people in the area with clean piped water.
Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga who unveiled the project at Riat hills in Kisumu on Thursday said the initiative will guarantee steady supply of water in the area.
With availability of clean treated water, more investors, he added, were expected to troop to Kisumu as the city slowly transforms into a regional business hub.
“We have witnessed an increase in the number of investors coming to Kisumu because of the proper infrastructure put in place by the county government,” he said.
Raila who is seeking the presidency in next week’s general election said if elected, his government will seek to complete infrastructural development projects in Kisumu to make it a regional hub.
Among the projects, he said, was the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) line from Naivasha to Kisumu to boost transport and trade within the East African region.
“We shall complete the SGR and connect it to the revived port of Kisumu so that goods from Mombasa can arrive here in good time before being shipped to Uganda and Tanzania,” he said.
Raila who donated the one-acre piece of land on which the project sits, handed over the title deed to Lake Victoria South Water Works Agency.
LVSWWA Chairman Dan Omino said through the project, water shall be abstracted from Lake Victoria and pumped to a treatment plant at Otonglo from where clean water will be pumped to Riat Hills and gravitated back to supply unserved areas.
The existing water treatment plant at Otonglo, he said, shall be rehabilitated to restore treatment capacity to 1.7 million litres per day.
Other works to be undertaken, he said include construction of water reservoirs with a capacity of 1.25 million litres at Riat Hills, laying the pipeline to convey water to Riat Hills and construction of a booster station at Kanyamedha.
Additional funds, he said, shall be sought to lay a 30km gravity water distribution pipeline to reach more consumers.
Other works in the pipeline, he said include construction of a 2000 cubic metre water storage tank at Riat Hills, construction of a 400 cubic metre reinforced concrete reservoir tank and construction of a resource centre to impart knowledge to students and members of the community.
By Chris Mahandara
