Solar-powered water supply to cut costs in Kakamega

Kakamega county will use solar to power its water supply to cut down on production costs and increase supply to its clients.

The move to solarise its supply will also ensure that more residents access clean, piped water at affordable cost to upscale Governor Fernandes Barasa’s ambitious programme to deliver water to every household in the county, dubbed  amatsi khumuliango (water at the door steps).

On Thursday, Barasa re-launched the Kakamega County Rural Water and Sanitation Company and announced that the company together Kakamega County Urban Water and Sanitation Company which supplies water to urban areas will adopt solar instead of electricity in all their supply schemes.

“Adoption of the solarisation technologies to our water supplies by the two companies will reduce the cost of operations and maintenance and boost supply,” Barasa said.

“Clean and affordable water is a human right; it is our responsibility as government to ensure water is clean, accessible and affordable to our people.”

Kacruwasco has so far revived 28 water supply schemes, supplying 68,000 people across the county with clean water. 

All stalled water projects are set to be revived in the next five years to expand accessibility to water, according to the county water and Environment executive Peninah Mukabane.

“We will begin with the low lying fruits across the county before we embark on the more complex procedures to ensure there is enough water,” Mukabane said.

Barasa also launched Kacruwasco’s  ambitious five-year strategic plan to improve water and sanitation services, the company intents to spent Sh1.8 billion between 2022-26.

The plan seeks to progressively improve water and sanitation coverage from the current 2, 750, o 18, 250 customers in 2026.

The plan also seeks to connect 1, 000 households to sewerage services within the same period.

It seeks to water coverage from the current 35 per cent to 60 per cent in 2006 and raise sewerage coverage to two per cent from zero currently.

Solar powered water will be connected to all public facilities including schools, health centres, markets, and shopping centres to move the commodity closer to people who cannot connect to their homes.

The strategic plan will be funded from grants from the county government Sh 1. 25 billion, Water revenue Sh 484.3 million and sewers and exhauster fees Sh 7.3 million.

The plan envisages that the company will raise its monthly revenue collection from water from Sh424, 000 per month to Sh 14, 375, 000 in 2027. 

The plan also highlights the plight of poor families, vulnerable households and persons living with disabilities.

This will include the establishment of communal water points in their neighbourhood, a line tariff through subsidy to the cost of water at those CWPs and also give priority to gender in operations.

Kacruwasco currently produces a combined 1,187cubic meters per day from several surfaced (streams and springs) as well as ground (boreholes).

Barasa said that the new company will embrace cashless revenue collection to reduce corruption and optimise on revenue collection.

“Kacruwasco is in the process of introducing a digital platform which will enable water consumers to access bill readings on their mobile phones,” he said.

The county registered Kacwaso in 2015 and Kacruwasco in 2021 to meet the rising demand. 

But Kacruwasco's operations became unsustainable after its expenditure outstripped its earnings with a monthly revenue income of Sh 500, 000.