By P, KNA
Makueni county governor Mutula Kilonzo Jr has commissioned the Yumbuni Borehole Water project in Nguu/Masumba Ward, Nzaui sub county.
The project, funded by Charity Water was implemented by Welt Hunger Hilfe (WHH) for the past one year and is expected to benefit 8,889 households in the area, with clean water for domestic use.
While commissioning the borehole, Mutula lauded WHH for introducing concepts that has helped to water governance, saying people will get water as per the amount of money paid.
“It is significant because they have introduced concepts, we have been grumbling with of water governance. In terms of provision for water, a person gets the exact amount he has paid for, without getting any excess,” said Mutula, while commissioning the borehole.
“We have had a problem, on what we call non-revenue water, that is water not accounted for, but already dispensed at the point, we have been losing 30 percent of it. But now we don’t have any losses of water because people now use cashless system that has a dashboard where the money is kept and easily accounted for,” he added.
The governor also noted that in the past they have struggled in maintaining projects for sustainability, saying this has hampered the efforts of the county government in providing clean water to the residents, due to frequent breakdown of boreholes.
“We have struggled in the past to maintain some of the projects that we have done. With this kind of system, we will not be dealing with maintenance of the projects because the committees will be able to repair damages and when it is above their budget, we shall assist,” said the governor.
Speaking at the event, the WHH Country Director, Christian Schniepper said that 7 kiosks have been placed strategically along the water pipeline and will provide clean water to the beneficiaries for their well-being.
“We are happy that the community has accessed water, which is an important economic opportunity for them and also good for their health,” said Schniepper.
The collaboration between the county government and WHH has resulted in completion 14 water projects, since August 2022, with the remaining two scheduled for implementation before July 2026.
Those present at the event included Deputy Governor Lucy Mulili, Kikumbulyu South MCA Daniel Musau, the county executive for Water Eng. John Kieti, his Devolution counterpart Nicholas Nzioka and the Assembly Minority Leader Jades Kalunda among the leaders.