James Ratemo
19 September 2007
opinion
Nairobi — Forty-four years after independence, some Kenyans pay to use toilets while others resort to 'flying toilets'.
Millions lack access to safe and reliable supply of water. Water is not only a basic need but is a human right.
It is the poor who face the full brunt of lack of essential services. In Kibera slums, for instance, one encounters rivers of raw sewage.
Children wade in these filthy rivers as those in posh estates swim in gigantic, warm and clean swimming pools.
Mobile latrine owners charge between three shillings and Sh15 per visit. Community bathrooms built by NGOs charge Sh15 per person daily. Women travel long distances to look for expensive but dirty water.
According to a recently launched survey, Citizens Report Card, on urban water, sanitation and solid waste services in Kenya, water kiosks still remain a major source of the commodity in city slums.
The report, which was handed over to Water Assistant minister, Mr Raphael Wanjala, cost Sh4.2 million to compile.
The survey researchers interviewed 2,905 households in Kisumu, Nairobi and Mombasa in September and October, last year.
Of the three cities, only in Nairobi is the water supply - and to a lesser extent the sewerage network - achieving satisfactory levels. Water companies are only directly serving 74 per cent of the population in Nairobi, 27 per cent in Mombasa and a dismal 13 per cent in Kisumu.
In Kisumu, 93 per cent of the lower income earners interviewed in the survey had no access to main water connections. The situation is only slightly better in Mombasa, where 78 per cent of the poor lack direct connection, while in Nairobi the figure stands at 31 per cent.
The slum dwellers, says the report, pay more than their wealthier neighbours, who have private connection, to access the kiosk water.
Mr Francis Mugo, the Managing Director, Nairobi Water and Sewerage Company, says his firm cannot supply water to households in the slums due to their temporary status.
He said the company would only add more than 50 water kiosks by end of the year to address demand.
Sample this, 50 jerry cans of water from a kiosk at Sh2 each adds up to Sh100. The same consumption from a water service provider would cost Sh17 in Nairobi, Sh25 in Mombasa and Sh47 in Kisumu.
Change in policyis needed to supply slum dwellers with clean water to alleviate the residents' sufferings.
Well-to-do consumers who were surveyed said they have had to invest in storage tanks, with a whooping Sh1.3 billion being spent in that regard across the three cities.
But the very poor cannot afford such tanks. To supplement supply, they rely on rainwater. But even this contaminated water is not guaranteed since it does not rain every day.
In moments of frustration, the residents resort to rivers, streams and dugout wells, hence exposing themselves to more danger.
The report further shows that the city councils are providing scarce garbage collection services. Thirty two per cent of the population in Nairobi, 48 per cent in Kisumu and 44 per cent in Mombasa throw their rubbish in the open.
Every election year, politicians have been elected on the platform of ensuring the provision of essential services. But they never deliver on their pledges.
This time round, voters should elect leaders committed to improving their lifestyles.
The writer is a Reporter with The Standard
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