Kenya: Kisii town to benefit from water and sanitation programme

Posted on December 16, 2010 by westerhof| Leave a comment

A Stakeholders Workshop held in Kisii Town last month endorsed a roadmap to design and implement a major water and sanitation development programme for the town, which will build on investments already completed under the Lake Victoria Water and Sanitation Initiative.

UN-HABITAT will provide pre-investment capacity building under the Initiative and the Global Water Operators Partnership Alliance to design the Progamme and strengthen the institutional capacity of the local service provider to enable the Government of Kenya to access funding from interested development partners, including the German Development Bank (KfW) and the private sector.

Kisii is an important urban and commercial centre in south-western Kenya and its development has long been constrained by a lack of effective urban planning and poor infrastructure. UN-HABITAT, through the Initiative has assisted in providing a strategic urban plan for the town and in expanding access to water, sanitation and solid waste management services.

These interventions have been complemented by training and capacity building for the Gusii Water Company as well as a number of pre-investment studies to lay the groundwork for a long term water and sanitation development programme. The work carried out under LVWATSAN has attracted the interest of potential development partners, including KfW and USAID.

The Stakeholders Workshop was attended by over 50 participants drawn from the Government of Kenya, the local authorities, the Gusii Water Company, UN-HABITAT and its Consultants, the Multi-Stakeholder Forum, representing the community-based organizations and the media.

In his remarks to officially open the workshop, the Representative of the Regional Commissioner Mrs. Lydia Muriuki noted that while service delivery in the town had improved with support provided under the Initiative, there is now a need to develop a consensus among the stakeholders on the main elements of a long term water and sanitation strategy for the town, including an agreed action plan and time frame.

The workshop benefited from a number of presentations from UN-HABITAT staff and consultants which highlighted the investment gaps in water and sanitation in the town, the results of studies carried out and the areas of possible assistance.

In endorsing a way forward, the Stakeholders agreed that there was a need to consolidate the various studies and proposals into a comprehensive Business and Investment Plan for water and sanitation development, which should address key constraints, including the expansion of the network to extend service to the entire town and the peri-urban areas, construction of a mini-hydro scheme, development of groundwater resources and further capacity enhancement for the service provider. UN-HABITAT was requested to provide assistance to prepare the updated Business and Investment Plan, which will then be submitted to KfW and other interested donors with priority being given to the construction of the mini-hydro project to reduce energy costs and maximize the utilization of clean energy.

Source: UN-HABITAT, 14 December 2010

New water, sanitation and hygiene programme takes off in Ethiopia

News, 7/23/2009 | Embassy of Finland, Addis Ababa

Following a 15-month planning phase, the Finland-Ethiopia Rural Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene Programme in Benishangul-Gumuz (FINNWASH BG) has officially moved to its implementation phase for the period of 2009-2012. The programme targets the Northern administrative zone Metekel, with five woreda-districts, and a population of some 250.000.

A Gumuz girl using a newly installed water point. Photo: Antti Inkinen.

The overall objective of the programme is to help the Benishangul-Gumuz regional state to achieve the country's ambitious plan to extend access to water and sanitation to 98% of the inhabitants in Metekel by the end of 2012. Outlined in Ethiopia's principle WASH strategic plan named the Universal Access Plan (UAP), this is a considerable task, particularly taking into account that at the end of 2008 access rates in rural Ethiopia average 52%.

Finland has been active in the water supply sector since the beginning of its Rural Water Supply and Environmental Programme (RWSEP) in 1994 in the Amhara regional state. During RWSEP, currently in its fourth and final phase, an innovative mechanism to channel grant funding for water point construction was devised (the Community Development Fund - CDF). Focusing on community-driven management, CDF, has shown excellent results in terms of construction speed, effectiveness cost-efficiency, and sustainability.

Replicating the success in other areas

After promising results in Amhara, Ethiopia officially requested support from Finland to help replicate it in other areas. Accordingly, Benishangul Gumuz, and particularly the Metekel zone adjacent to the RWSEP programme areas, was jointly selected for replication.

The planning phase aimed to establish a clear way forward in an area that is scarcely populated, poorer in economic terms, has less infrastructure, great distances and less accessibility, particularly in terms of CDF applicability. During this phase, capacity has been built, studies conducted, community demand ensured and, importantly the first 82 water points constructed.

While challenges exist, with enhanced information based on hands-on experience, the joint cooperation has now been able to plan and budget for four years of WASH development.

For more information, please contact the Embassy of Finland in Addis Ababa: antti.inkinen@formin.fi, or martha.solomon@formin.fi

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Updated 7/23/2009

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