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How boreholes are quenching thirst for West Pokot and Turkana residents

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Situated in the northwestern part of Kenya, West Pokot and Turkana counties are covered by vast arid open lying plains dominated by shrub and grassland.

According to the Kenya Meteorological Department rainfall in these areas is erratic and varies significantly over time and space, with temperatures ranging from 20°C to 41°C. 

This situation has seen residents of this area live a semi-nomadic life, as they have to move from one place to another in search of water and pasture for their livestock.

With seasonal rivers and shallow wells often drying up, residents are forced to make long treacherous journeys in search of these precious commodities.

However, a wave of innovative solutions is offering hope in the face of these challenges.

Through borehole drilling, and water filtration systems, local communities are finding sustainable ways to secure clean water. 

These efforts are not just improving access to this precious resource but also transforming lives, providing safer and easier options for families like those in the Natoos community in Turkana County, Kenya. 

West Pokot lies within Mt. Elgon aquifer area, a transboundary system shared between Uganda and Kenya, spanning three lake basins and several administrative units. 

On the Kenyan side the aquifer region is within the Lakes Victoria and Turkana basins.

Groundwater can be a vital source of hope in the struggle against water scarcity. Photo by Jesse Chenge. 

In Nwaiterong sublocation, the wind of change is palpable. The bright smiles on the faces of pupils at Napur primary school and the neighbours is heartwarming.

A resident of this area, only identified as Rahma, is all smiles. The simple fact that she can go to Napur primary school and fetch safe and clean water for herself and her family is more than enough reason for her to be grateful to God.

Just a year ago, she would draw water from earth openings that collected water after rainfall. This water, she said, was what her family would use for drinking and other domestic chores.

“We were really suffering. But what could we do? The only other option was to part with Ksh200 on a can of water supplied by vendors who use motorcycles to get tapped water from town,” she says.

She notes that her children would constantly fall ill, and what kept her going was the hope that the government will one day provide clean water to the area residents.

But today, this sad situation has changed. Naipur Primary School has become a beacon of hope, as the school’s headteacher, James Kennedy Mwita says.

Located in the semi-arid Turkana Central Sub County, Turkana, the school suffered immense water scarcity in the area that often receives long rains as scarcely as once every three years.

The school hosts 1, 345 pupils, with 450 occupying the available boarding facilities. This boarding section has 280 girls and 170 boys.

Lack of unsafe water has for decades been the school’s biggest challenge as this posed a serious public health threat to the learners.

Today, the learners can afford a smile following the drilling of three boreholes and installation of a 10,000 litre water tank to help with harvesting rain water in the school. 

“I thank Water Step for their support to help us in harvesting water,” he said.

Gloria Loper, a Grade Seven pupil expresses her joy with the newly found water supply which she says will make her avoid the long journey in search of water.

“We are very grateful on behalf of the students and parents. We have had a serious challenge with water. We usually have salty water, stomach aches for children because of contaminated water consumption. We thank you (Water Step) for donating machines for purifying the water and water tanks for storage,” says Selina Awesit, a board member at Napur Primary School.

Prior to this development, Awesit would bring some water to the school, but this would not be enough for the learners.

The lack of water poses challenges for communities around the world, particularly in areas heavily reliant on agriculture and natural resources. Photo by Jesse Chenge.

 On his part, Humphrey Muchuma, Water Step Ambassador and Director for East Africa, says the project’s goal is to ensure that marginalised and vulnerable communities have safe water.

Other than helping Napur school, Water Step runs several similar initiatives in a prison within the community to make sure that inmates have clean water.

“With the school’s huge population, and the existence of a boarding section convinced us that this facility actually needed this water. We intervened by ensuring the school has enough water and enough machines to provide safe water,” says Muchuma 

With the three large tanks, the school can store up to 30,000 litres of water.

Water Step has also trained the school how to harvest water runoff, and use it to establish kitchen gardens.

This story was produced with support from NBI Secretariat (Nile-Sec), which, in partnership with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and with funding from the Global Environment Facility (GEF), implemented a program across the Nile Basin focused on shared groundwater aquifers. The project’s goal was to improve water resource management at both the national and basin levels.

The first phase concentrated on building knowledge and capacity for the sustainable use and management of significant transboundary aquifers within the Nile Basin. Three aquifer areas were selected for intervention: the Kagera aquifer shared by Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, and Burundi; the Mt Elgon aquifer shared by Uganda and Kenya; and the Gedaref-Adigrat aquifer shared by Sudan and Ethiopia. These aquifers are located in various climates, including arid, semi-arid, and tropical regions.

Initially, the phase involved gathering existing data and creating a Shared Aquifer Diagnostic Report (SADA) for the three selected aquifers. The subsequent phase engaged in groundwater modeling to enhance understanding of the aquifers and analyze scenarios based on changes in climate and groundwater use.

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