The rehabilitation of a fifty million Makutano- Kapenguria Water Supply project in West Pokot county has been launched courtesy of the World bank and the national government to help residents access clean water.
Water Principle Secretary Prof. Fred Segor and West Pokot Deputy Governor Titus Lotee presided over the launch of the project that is set to boost production of water in Kapenguria township and its environment .
The project will involve dam replacement, housing units, renovations, intake repairs and water treatment to increase the volume of water.
The project that was put in place 44 years ago will be upgraded hence boost production to 2500 cubic meters of water per day.
The Makutano-Kapenguria water Supply Project will be undertaken in 10 month before its completion.
The water project which is anticipated to solve problems of water scarcity and sanitation problems among residents will help serve a population of 25,000 people per day within Kapenguria township and its environment .
The project will greatly help solve water shortage in the area before completion of the ongoing Siyoi-Muruny water project in Pokot South Sub County which costs 9 billion shillings.
Speaking during the launch of the project in Kapenguria, PS Segor said the project will address the water problem in the area hence improve the economy of the region.
“Will prepare before the major water project after two years,” he said.
Segor said that the project will help pastoralists in the area for their cattle to access water.
“We hope that everyone will have a cow to use the water,” he said.
He explained that water rationing will be done for the project to serve the entire population of more than 100,000 people in the area.
“The project will serve 25,000 per day and we shall ration in order for every one to access water,” said Segor.
The PS asked residents to protect the environment through soil conservation, planting trees and conserving forests.
“We urge you not to cultivate along rivers, plant more trees to help protect the environment. We want residents to minimize destruction of the environment in the area,” he said.
Segor urged engineers working on water projects in area to embrace gravity water system citing that it is cheap to maintain.
“It is expensive to use electricity to pump water. Siyoi –Muruny water project will not use power to pump water,” he said.
He urged officers in charge of the water project to minimize leakages and manage water well to avoid huge bills of electricity.
“It is better to minimize water wastage so that you don’t pay a lot of money for electricity,” he said.
The Deputy Governor Titus Lotee said that area residents have for along time lacked water because of poor piping hence thanked the government for the project.
“The project was installed in 1972 and the pipes are old hence a lot of leakages. The tanks are in a bad state and has old structures” said Lotee.
He reiterated that people had encroached public land hence the bulldozers destroyed the pipes.
“There has been a lot of vandalism ,pipes placed in wrong places hence pipes destroyed/” noted Lotee.
The Deputy governor said that Makutano –Kapenguria water project has been having water pumping problems because huge bills of electricity.
“The county government got electricity power debt of 17 million and cleared and it has again paid 8 million shillings,” said Lotee.