The West Pokot County government and the Kenya Red Cross Society have commissioned a resettlement program worth Kshs 5.3 million for families whose homes were destroyed by flash floods that affected the Chesegon area in April, 2020.
The exercise where 53 houses will be constructed, spearheaded by Kenya Red Cross, will take 6 weeks and the houses will be complete for use.
Speaking at Chesegon, West Pokot Governor John Lonyangapuo said that distribution of tree seedlings to landslide prone areas is ongoing as a measure of averting future landslides.
The Kenya Red Cross Society, West Pokot County coordinator Ms Scholastica Kapelo said the recovery measures have been placed on board and they are now in the first cycle of their disaster management program that aims at helping the affected families.
She further added concerning the floods and landslides faced by the County, Red Cross has reached the recovery phase, aimed at helping the victims get back to normal living.
“As the lead agency in humanitarian emergencies, Red Cross in partnership with other partners is expected to start constructing houses for those families whose homes were left inhabitable after the landslide,” she said.
According to Kapelo the project is estimated to run at a cost of Kshs 5.3 million and will involve putting up shelter and homes to more than 53 families whose homes are considered inhabitable and help them start a new life.
“We have already gone to the ground and with the help of the village elders and local authorities we have done thorough assessment to ensure no one is left out and no one cheats their way in to benefit,” emphasized Ms Kapelo.
“We are working closely with the County multi-agency committee to see to it that the affected people are resettle as soon as possible,” she said.
She pointed out that they are not going to construct houses for everybody but ‘shelter and reconstruction’ only aims at reconstructing homes to those whose houses were totally destroyed.
The County coordinator thanked every department that came out in response to the disaster and even the friends and relatives who provided homes to the affected families and those who are still hosting them.