Kenya to develop a treatment plant in Kakamega County

The government of Kenya is set to construct a wastewater treatment plant in Kakamega County. The County Governor, Wycliffe Oparanya broke ground for the project which aims to improve the management of effluents, which are responsible for the disappearance of aquatic biodiversity.

The plant which will cost more than US $149,000 is set to serve at least 2,300 households in Mumias. The wastewater treated by the future plant will be returned to nature, reducing pollution of waterways.

“We need three more such facilities in the county to effectively treat wastewater. Currently, the population has to make do with a sewage system that is in poor condition,” said Kakamega Governor Wycliffe Oparanya.

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KTSWSSP projects

The county government is funding the project with support from the Water Sector Trust Fund (WSTF). The initiative is part of the Kenya Sustainable Urban Water Supply and Sanitation Program (KTSWSSP).

Prior to Kakamega County, the Kenyan central government announced in September 2021 that work will begin on a wastewater treatment plant in Kisumu County. The future facility will treat wastewater from the Kodiaga detention centre in western Kenya. The project will benefit another 3,000 people in Kisumu, the country’s third largest city after the capital Nairobi and Mombasa.

At least 28 sub-projects will be implemented under the KTSWSSP to improve water supply and wastewater management in several Kenyan cities. The program will also strengthen the resilience of populations to climate change, which manifests itself mainly in drought.