For Kenyans, water from Germany

Cooperation has helped over 1.6 million people in poor urban areas access water

Germany will spend (Ksh28 billion) 250 million euros in development cooperation with Kenya in the next two years, Berlin’s ambassador to Nairobi Mrs Jutta Frasch has said. Mrs Frash said negotiations for the funds between Kenya and Germany were concluded last month and the money would be expended in 2017 and 2018.

The ambassador said water was one of the sectors that would greatly benefit from the funding when she spoke at the opening of first ever Kenya-German Water Week  held at the Kenya Water Institute. Water and Irrigation Cabinet Secretary Eugene Wamalwa, who officially opened the conference, said that accelerated involvement of the private sector in water provision would enable the country to address its water scarcity.

“Kenya is a water-scarce country. Sixty-five per cent in urban areas are covered and only 49 per cent in rural areas. Sanitation stands at 20 per cent. Continued urbanization leads to more demand. Our economic growth is also raising the demand for industrial water,” said Mr Wamalwa.

“We support Public Private Partnerships and new technologies in solving water problems and we welcome our German experts to share with us their experiences,” said Mr Wamalwa.

German water experts are in the country to train their Kenyans on latest technology and trends in water and wastewater management. It precedes the first Kenya Water Week which will be held next month. The experts, brought in courtesy of the German government, will hold a five-day workshop in Nairobi, with participants drawn from stakeholders in the industry.

Since 2009, 1.6 million people in poor urban areas have benefited from access to clean water through the German-Kenyan cooperation. In Western Kenya, a further 400,000 now have sustainable access to water.

“Water and sanitation, especially in urban areas, are issues that need to be addressed urgently. The workshop will focus on latest technological advances to help more people access clean water,” said the Country Director of the Delegation of German Industry and Commerce in Kenya, Mrs Maren Diale-Schellschmidt, the workshop conveners.

The high level training aims to boost knowledge transfer, the exchange of experiences and discuss strategies in matters relating to sustainable water management solutions.

[crp]