Economic blueprint at risk over water shortage

The perennial freshwater shortage in Kenya, largely blamed on inefficiency in water resource management, threatens the country’s efforts towards achieving Vision 2030 and the Millennium Development Goals, economists warn.

They say that the situation in Kenya is a reflection of what is happening in East Africa, despite the fact that the region has numerous freshwater resources in Lake Victoria — the second largest freshwater lake in the world; the River Nile; Lake Tanganyika — the second deepest lake in the world and Lake Malawi.

Freshwater resources

East Africa’s freshwater resources account for only 4.7 per cent of Africa’s total, whereas the region is home to 19 per cent of the continent’s population.

“Water scarcity is a problem Kenya should work on urgently. Only 57 per cent of the country’s households use water sources considered safe.
“Overall, it is unlikely that Kenya will meet the MDG on environmental sustainability (water access to all) by 2015 despite government aim to implement various programmes to address water scarcity in the country,” said Julius Chokerah, the national economist at the United Nations Development Programme in Nairobi.

Disparity

There is also a considerable disparity in accessibility between urban and rural areas said Mr Chokerah.

He noted that there are regional imbalances in water security — with some parts of the country having a lot of water during rainy seasons and little or no water during dry periods — remains a major challenge.

According to the Ministry of Water, Kenya’s per capita water supply stands at 696 cubic metres per year against a population of about 40 million. This is far below the internationally required benchmark of 1,000 cubic metres per capita per year.

Rural dwellers in most parts of the country walk several kilometres in search of the commodity, a situation that hampers other economic activities.

According to experts, the commodity has turned into a market-oriented product leading to high prices to the detriment of the poor.

Influx of crooks

Scarcity of freshwater in the country continues to present an ideal investment climate for the mineral water business, with firms dealing in the sub-sector experiencing tremendous growth.

The opportunity is also being exploited by unlicensed bottled water companies distributing low-priced water through local kiosks and handcarts.

“This is a human rights issue (lack of sufficient water). It is worrying that Kenyans are developing a notion that water is a commodity whose distribution depends entirely on market forces even for domestic use, instead of a common good that should be accessible to all,” said Caleb Ng’wena of Genesis for Human Rights Commission.