30 Nov LVNWWDA Participates in the 7th East Africa Water Summit 2022

Today, the Water Secretary Eng. SAO Alima represented the Cabinet Secretary, Hon. Alice Wahome during the official opening of the 7th East Africa Water Summit (EAWATERS) that is being held from 30th November ,2022- to 2nd December 2022 at Kenya Water Institute (KEWI) South C, Nairobi.

In a keynote address that was read by the Water Secretary, CS Hon. Alice Wahome said that the objectives of the 7th East Africa Water Summit (EAWATERS) under the 2022 Theme: “Sustainable Water Resources & Sanitation Development for social-Economic Transformation” was to engage Water and Sanitation stakeholders from across the East African region on these realities, to avoid the disastrous consequences of the threats and lead to a future where the full potential of East Africa’s water resources can be readily unleashed to stimulate and sustain growth in the region’s economic development and social well-being. In this regard to protect the dignity of Kenyans the sanitation policy is finalised and ready for debate in Parliament. The Policy encourages decentralization of sanitation system and city wide planning. Improper treatment of wastes leads to pollution of our water resources.

To accelerate the achievement of sustainable development goal six (6), the 7th East Africa Water Summit (EAWATERS) seeks to meet below objectives:

1. 1. Ensure sustainable access to safe and adequate water supply and sanitation to meet the basic needs of all;
   2. Effective and sustainable strategies for addressing natural and man-made water-resources problems, including climate variability and change;
   3. Ensure political will, public awareness, and commitment among all for sustainable, water-resources management, including the mainstreaming of gender issues and youth concerns; and the use of participatory approaches, ensure sufficient water for food, energy and security;
   4. Water for sustaining ecosystems and biodiversity is adequate in quantity and quality;
   5. Water basins serve as a basis for regional cooperation and development, and are treated as natural assets for all within such basins;
   6. Institutions that deal with water resources have been reformed to create an enabling environment for effective and integrated management of water in national and transboundary water basins, including management at the lowest appropriate level.
   7. Water is financed and priced to promote equity, efficiency, and sustainability.

This calls for a new way of thinking about water and a new form of regional cooperation. At the regional level, it calls for partnership and solidarity between countries that share common water basins.
Expectations from the summit include that the private sector, which exhibited innovative products and technologies, will use their financial leverage to invest in the water sector to plug in the sector budget deficit and also continue making products tailored to eliminate inefficiencies in the water sector through compliance with relevant standards.

The government commits to provide an enabling and conducive environment for the private sector to invest. In this respect, the review of the the Public Private Partnership enhances growth in service delivery. The Government had financed the construction of dams and several water pans to provide water for domestic and agricultural use.

CS Wahome urged the Summit to explore policy options that can be integrated to the current policy development to improve governance of the water sector within the framework of devolution.

She called upon the stakeholders to look into modalities of closing the ever widening financial and investment gap as well as application of appropriate technological innovations to enhance delivery of water services, increase efficiency of use while conserving to the extent possible water catchment areas.

Our Agency is attending the summit led by the Chairman Board of Directors Hon. Julius Bakasa Wasike, HSC, and our Directors Samuel Kiptorus, Zipporah Matasi, Oliver Kiverenge, John Masaba and our Acting CEO Eng. Samson Peter Gongi.