This archive report was first published on 12 September 2019.
Boreholes Quench Turkana's Thirst, But Aquifers Remain Underdeveloped ¶
For close to six decades, Alice Napoo, a resident of Turkana County, would leave her home in Naipa Village before sunrise to fetch water from the River Turkwel, about seven kilometres away. The treacherous journey was one she had to make every day for the survival of her family.
However, her life has since changed for the better after a borehole was dug next to her home 18 months ago. The ready availability of water has had a tremendous impact on her life, allowing her to take a bath whenever she wants and have enough water for her family and livestock.
"I can take a bath when I want to," she says, amid laughter. "We have enough for everyone and our livestock too. Life is also much easier, because I no longer have to wake up at 5am to go fetch water," Napoo adds.
According to the United Nations, about 800 million people in sub-Saharan Africa live in a water-scarce environment, with 115 people dying every hour from diseases linked to poor sanitation, hygiene, and contaminated water.
Despite the discovery of three aquifers in Kangatotha, Napuu, and Lotikippi basins six years ago, which were estimated to have the capacity to supply the whole country with water for more than 70 years, the county government still has its work cut out. The delay in developing the aquifers is attributed to inadequate funding, with the average budget for the entire county ministry being about Sh400 million.
"Water supply was devolved to county governments, but we do not receive enough money to fund big projects," says Turkana County acting director Water Services Tito Ochieng.
Non-governmental organisations, such as Unicef and Oxfam, have stepped in by digging boreholes, which has substantially cut the long treks women and children make to the water points. In 2013, residents would walk about 12 kilometres in search of water, but that distance has been more than halved due to investments in water drilling.
Currently, there are about 1,500 boreholes serving the expansive county, which covers 71,597.6 square kilometres. However, a good number of these boreholes are mismanaged, with Unicef planning to dig up 76 more boreholes in the most underserved areas as part of a Sh700 million four-year project.
The project will also involve setting up of sand dams and water pans for harvesting and improving sanitation and hygiene for 232,500 people. The Turkana region gets ample rainfall every year, with areas like Lodwar receiving about 390mm of rainfall annually, but most of this water is lost as surface run-off due to lack of collection infrastructure.
"Our goal is to strengthen community's resilience in the wake of climate change and especially in increasing access to safe water throughout the year," says Unicef Kenya's Water Sanitation Hygiene Specialist, Agnes Makanyi.
The county has also enacted a Water Act to provide a framework guiding investments and partnerships in water supply, which integrates the communities in the management of the resource.
