State seeks private investment to improve water access

Residents queue for water at the Kwa Kavoo borehole in Kitui Rural 2. A drying River Tiva, a few days after the heavy rains 3. CHPs training Kasaala residents on how to treat water. [FILE]

The government seeks to tap into private capital to rehabilitate degraded lands as it seeks to increase water access in arid and semi-arid lands as well as urban areas.

The Environment Ministry has invited different investors to partner with the government in finding viable solutions to the issue of water shortages.

Speaking on Thursday during the Wetlands International roundtable meeting in Nairobi, Dr Sally Kimosop, representing the ministry, encouraged full engagement on the barriers and opportunities for the core investment and nature-based solutions.

"We need to ensure we are having nature-based solutions through identifying shared goals among these stakeholders and investors so that we can identify the areas facing degradation and bring various innovations to solve this issue of water shortage," said Dr Kimosop.

An estimated 15 million Kenyans still lack access to safe water, according to the United Nations, with at most 350 hectares of land lost to degradation.

Wetland International Regional Director Julie Mulonga addressed water security as the main challenge being faced by many communities.

"The problem is big; we need to solve the issue of water security as soon as we can, even if it has always been the main issue we at Wetlands International have been facing over the past years. This can only happen through multi-stakeholder partnerships," she said.

She also addressed the need to form more initiatives that can be used to bring more stakeholders on board and help educate people on the importance of wetlands.

Kenya leads countries facing water shortages in East Africa, with urban populated and border areas affected the most.

For the issue, they mentioned the role of technology in the evidence and quantification of data within the regions where water shortage is a main problem, highly overpopulated regions.

"I encourage the private sector to fully invest and partner with us, not only in financial matters but also for statistical collection," said the Director of Water Resources in the State Department for Water and Sanitation Andrew Mwarekenyo. He also urged the public to participate in environmental conservation to secure water resources.

According to a 2022 report, Kenya is one of the 19 countries that performed poorly in the UN's water security report

Out of 54 countries, the country's national water security score based on different indicators was position 46.