This archive report was first published on 5 May 2020.
The Itare Dam project in Nakuru County, initially slated for completion by April 2021, is now expected to be finished in 2023.
The dam's implementing body, Rift Valley Water Works Development Agency, is seeking a new contractor after the Italian contractor, CMC Di Ravenna, declared bankruptcy and left the site in September 2018.
According to Rift Valley Water Works Development Agency Chief Executive Officer Hosea Wendot, the CMC Di Ravenna contractor completed only 30% of the work, leaving out almost 70% of the project, which includes the dam foundation, treatment plant, outlet tunnel, and pipeline.
Wendot stated that the agency is in the process of closing books with CMC Di Ravenna and is now looking for another contractor to complete the project.
Once complete, the multi-billion dam project is expected to provide clean drinking water to approximately 800,000 residents of Nakuru County and expand the Lake Nakuru sewerage treatment plant.
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations has been conducting investigations into alleged graft in the Sh38 billion Itare Dam project.
The dam is expected to yield 100,000 cubic meters of water per day.
