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Nairobi County Deputy Governor Ann Kananu is in Mombasa County to review the sewer and sanitation revolving fund policy which seeks to provide sufficient and sustainable financing for sanitation infrastructure and promote universal access for sustainable sanitation services in Nairobi County.
This comes as the county seeks to attain the 100% sanitation coverage by the year 2030.
Kananu led her County Executive Members, acting County Secretary, Dr Jairus Musumba, Nairobi Water and Sanitation senior management and Nairobi Water and Sewerage Company Board members in the tour.
” As we gather here today, I request you all to take great interest in and interrogate all the relevant water and sanitation policy documents and give your views prior to approval by the cabinet and allow for other legislative processes,” said Kananu
The Ag.Governor said that Nairobi City requires an integrated approach to achieve expansion of water and sanitation services anchored on coherent policies and laws. H.E added that currently there exists a legislative and regulatory framework gaps that impedes attainment of economic right to water and sanitation.
Said the Ag. Governor, “It is in realization of this gap that the Water and Sanitation Policy, Bill and Regulation together with Sewer and Sanitation Policy, Bill and Regulation were formulated to align service delivery with the dictates of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010.”
H. E pointed out that with diminishing resources for water and sanitation services the City’s capacity to respond to the ever-increasing demand for water services, coupled with increase and influx of population in the city slum areas, water and sanitation service provision has been on a downwards trajectory, Increasing illegal small-scale water supply connection to the system and cartels factor are associated with inadequate governance and compliance framework.
The Ag. Governor, called on the Managing Director, Nairobi City and Sewerage Company Eng. Nahason Muguna to scale down on issues of cartels in the water system in Nairobi.
Eng. Muguna said Nairobi City Water and Sewerage Company considers provision of water as a key enabler to President Uburu Kenyatta’s big Four (4) agenda. Eng. Muguna also confirmed that the Nairobi City Water and Sewerage Company Board was Commitment to ensuring universal access to basic sanitation services.
The County Executive in charge of Environment,Water, Energy, Climate Change and Natural Resources Mr. Larry Wambua pointed out that Sanitation was one of the devolved sectors. He said the Sanitation sector is committed to building and strengthening devolved planning, implementation and management of sanitation services.
Mr. Wambua said that the Sewer and Sanitation Revolving Funds targets to mobilize resources from the public and private sectors, community and individual to ensure improved sanitation services coverage in Nairobi.
The Nairobi Metropolitan Services( NMS) Secretary Ethics and Intergovernmental Relations- Mr.Abdi Kahia who represented Director General, NMS Major General Mohamed Badi, echoed his support for the continued cooperation between Nairobi City County and the NMS citing it as very good for the city’s development agenda.
The Constitution of Kenya article 43(1) b and 43(1) d spells out that access to reasonable standards of sanitation as well as clean and safe water in adequate quantities is an economic and social right to every person.
Other key areas of discussions included;
- Water and Sanitation Policy – The aim is to embed the devolved functions of water and sanitation in county policy framework. This will also align the existing policies with Constitution of Kenya, 2010.
- Water and Sanitation Bill- This legal framework will lay foundation for the protection of land assets among others from speculation.
- Water and Sanitation Regulation- The regulation will actualize the water and Sanitation Bill
- Sewer and Sanitation Revolving Fund Policy – The framework will lay foundation for the protection of land assets among others from speculation
- Sewer and Sanitation Revolving Fund Bill- Moreover, the revolving fund law will open opportunities for resource mobilization through a special purpose vehicle that will work with the current existing water and sanitation structures.
- Sewer and Sanitation Revolving Fund Regulation – The regulation will actualize the Sewer and Sanitation Revolving Fund Bill