The ministry of water and sanitation has signed an MOU with the Bomet County government on a partnership of improving water provision and proper sanitation in the county.
Principal Secretary for water and sanitation Dr. Paul Rono said 20,000 families in Bomet County are connected to piped water but were uncertain about the hygiene of the water they are using because of vandalism of the water system.
Dr. Rono tasked the county government to repair pipes and guard against vandalism of water system that he noted were major issues that interfered and hindered the provision and access to clean water for residents.
“We are aware that over 20,000 families from the county are linked with piped water of which the concern is, how safe or clean is that water, we are working closely with the County government of Bomet to ensure that many families are connected with reliable supply and clean water,” stated PS Rono.
He added the government’s top priority is to have over 800,000 families in the county connected to clean water before the end of President William Ruto’s first term.
In the MOU the national and county government will partner in last-mile connectivity of water and power in the county
Bomet governor Hillary Barchok acknowledged that the Provision of safe and clean water for people remains a top priority for the county government and that his administration is committed to focusing more energy and resources to deliver the same.
“We are glad that the national government has demonstrated its resolve to partner with us in implementing a number of water projects geared towards enhancing our capacity to connect most of our homesteads to piped water, across the county,” stated Barchok.
On waste management in the county, Dr. Rono asked the administration to embrace modern technologies in establishing a sanitation treatment plant in the area.
“Waste management is another critical area that many counties are dealing with currently in the country, we are urging relevant departments to embrace modern technologies as an alternative method to manage it,” explained Dr Rono.
Dr Rono indicated that the projects are expected to be completed within a duration of one year to benefit the people of Bomet.
The PS also urged residents to continue planting trees as per the directives of President Ruto in a bid to have a 40 percent tree cover in the country by the year 2030
Among other partners that were onboard included Kenya Red Cross and Central Rift Valley Water Works Development Agency.
By Lamech Willy
