By Jack Ochieng, DevReporter, Siaya County
Even though Siaya County is surrounded by numerous water bodies like Lake Victoria, Lake Kanyaboli, River Yala, and River Nzoia, among other seasonal streams, access to clean water for domestic use still remains a perennial problem in the area.
Mzee Maurice Owich, 53, a resident of Uhongo village in Alego Usonga Sub-County laments that the Siaya County government abandoned the construction of Ufinya Dam, a project which would have to some extent solved the water problem and benefitted a population of more than 18,000 people.
“The construction of this dam just failed from the initial tendering stage. Tender allocation itself was not as per the Public Procurement & Government Contracts 2021,” claims Mr Owich.
Mr Owich added that despite that, the Project Management Committee (PMC), where he used to be a member, has been following the matter. As the community, we are now hopeful that the County government will take action and ensure that the project is completed.
Poor management of water supply services
Back in 2017, the Siaya County governor, Cornell Rasanga denied that his government was responsible for the perennial water problem in the region. He instead blamed the Siaya-Bondo (SIBO) Water Service Company.
https://citizen.digital/news/im-not-to-blame-for-siaya-county-water-shortage-rasanga-162077/
The United Nations blueprint on water sustainability has put water security under the international spotlight.
https://ec.europa.eu/environment/water/blueprint/index_en.htm
Human rights bodies and other non-governmental organisations have come out to intervene in the Ufinya dam crisis.
Mr William Owino, who is the coordinator of Siaya Community Support and Accountability Program, Siaya Branch, refuted claims that the dam is dangerous and could one day be the source of natural disasters just like some that have been witnessed in the country recently.
Siaya County residents complain that it has been four years since construction at the dam started but still there is no hope of completing the project. This is despite several meetings by local administrators aimed at getting the project completed.
“We made an appeal to the county government so that our people can get compensated for losses resulting from stalling of the project but there was no political goodwill to bring it into effect,” Mr Owich said.
Dry farms and fish ponds
It is saddening to see women walk for over 5km within Alego Usonga to fetch water. They had hopes that after the dam had been dredged, it would serve the residents well.
Therefore, there is a need to ensure that the project is completed. The Kenyan government through the Ministry of Water and Sanitation should intervene and ensure the project is completed.
Related stories
- Siaya County Governor Cornel Rasanga has denied that his government is responsible for the perennial water problems in the region https://citizen.digital/news/im-not-to-blame-for-siaya-county-water-shortage-rasanga-162077/
2. High fluoride water in Bondo-Rarieda area of Siaya County, Kenya: a hydro-geological implication on public health in the Lake Victoria Basin https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1471-2458-14-462
3. Kenya: Siaya Town Hit By Acute Water Shortage https://allafrica.com/stories/201306141416.html
4. Kenya: Govt Sh2.1 Billion Project to Address Water Shortage Problem in Siaya https://allafrica.com/stories/201610180612.html
