The Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) East Africa’s Director General Ms. Hyewon Cho, recently paid a visit to Turkana County to evaluate the progress of the Sh800 million Kenya WASH KOICA project.
The water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) initiative aims to enhance access to water, sanitation, and hygiene in Turkana Central and Loima sub-counties.
During her visit, Ms. Cho met with senior officials from the County government, including CEC Peter Akono, who represented the Governor.
The KOICA team commended the Turkana County Water and Community Health Services Acts as significant achievements in terms of policies and developments.
They also discussed plans for the second phase of the project, with a focus on borehole sustainability, managing capacity gaps, and allocating resources in maintaining desalination plants.
The meeting was an opportunity for officials to discuss the progress made during the first phase of the project, as well as the challenges encountered and the milestones achieved.
County Executive for Lands, Physical Planning and Urban Areas Management Peter Akono expressed his appreciation for the efforts of the partners and urged them to focus on areas such as climate change, water, and health.
CEC Akono emphasized the need for constructing water infrastructure to improve water management systems and open up water access.
He urged the partners to equip boreholes and highlighted the importance of fast-tracking piping, solarization systems, and institutional connections. Access to clean water is a basic human need and a top priority on Governor Lomorukais’ agenda.
The Chief Officer of Health and Sanitation, Peter Lomorukai thanked the partners for their support and highlighted the success of the 2019 SCORE project in improving WASH activities in Loima and Turkana Central sub-counties.
The project has benefited over 232,500 rural populations and has anchored the health system on community health service, making it successful in addressing authentication issues. However, he also pointed out challenges such as staffing, mobility, insecurities, follow-up support, and the need for more direct funding.
Chief Officer for Water Simon Etom hailed the enacted Turkana Water Act 2019, which established the number of institutions that would go forward in ensuring cooperative governance.
He pointed out the boreholes targeted for upgrading and urged partners to support sustainability by conceptualizing water for livestock as an area of interest.
The visit was an excellent opportunity for KOICA to assess the progress of the project and discuss plans for the future. With a continued focus on water access, sanitation, and hygiene, Turkana County will continue to make strides in improving the lives of its citizens.
By Peter Gitonga
