This archive report was first published on 22 May 2020.
Nairobi residents are bracing for even more severe water shortages as the government agency responsible for water supply struggles to maintain services. The crisis has been ongoing for weeks, with residents forced to rely on unverified water vendors.
According to residents, the available water is expensive and of questionable safety. 'We have not received water for the past two weeks. We are therefore unable to maintain the level of cleanliness required by the Ministry of Health to keep Covid-19 at bay,' said Alice Atieno, a resident of Umoja Estate in Nairobi.
Residents have been forced to look for alternatives, with many turning to water vendors who draw water from boreholes and other unknown sources. 'We now buy water from vendors who draw it from boreholes and other places we don’t know about. We are now living in danger of contracting something bigger than Coronavirus,' added Judith Jahenda, a green grocer in Nairobi.
The situation in Nairobi's slums, particularly in Mukuru Kwa Reuben, Mathare, and Kibra areas, is dire. In fact, Kibra slum has been identified as a hotspot for Covid-19 cases in Nairobi County, with a total of 52 cases reported in just three days.
The water services providers association (WASPA) has warned that the situation could worsen if the government does not intervene. 'People have not been paying water bills after the Coronavirus pandemic. Thus we have had a shortage of over Sh1 billion to run our operations,' said Antony Ambugo, the Chief Executive Officer of WASPA.
WASPA has called upon the government and other stakeholders to chip in and bridge the gap, or else taps will completely run dry. The crisis comes just days after the Nairobi City Water and Sewerage Company shut down water supply from Sasumwa dam following a landslide in Karemenu at the Aberdare ranges.
