This archive report was first published on 16 December 2021.
Naivasha's Manera estate, the oldest informal settlement in the area, has been waiting for piped water for 40 years. The wait is finally over, thanks to a project undertaken by the County Government of Nakuru and Naivasha Water and Sanitation Company.
Over 150 households in the estate are expected to be connected to clean, fluoride-free, and safe drinking water. The project is a major relief for the residents, who have faced numerous challenges, including lack of safe drinking water.
According to Lakeview MCA Simon Wanyoike Wanango, the project will cost Sh3 million, with the county government contributing Sh2 million. The MCA said the project is timely, given the challenges the residents have faced in the past.
Wanango also claimed that some traders had blocked the only borehole the residents had been relying on and destroyed water pipes that supplied the area. The traders allegedly wanted to evict the families and grab the land on which the slum sits.
Local youth will be hired to dig trenches for laying the water pipes in the project, which is expected to take two weeks. The MCA expressed happiness that the problem of water shortage in the village will now be resolved once and for all.
Joseph Maina, the local community chairman, said residents had been buying water from vendors at a high cost. Their other source of water had been River Karati, but it was unreliable because it was seasonal.
Published on December 16, 2021.
