Nairobi water rationing to end next week

Excavator digging trenches at the Northern Collector tunnel water project in Ng'ethu village Gatundu North. [Fidelis Kabunyi, Standard]

Residents of Nairobi and the larger metropolitan area can now heave a sigh of relief following the completion of the multi-billion-shilling Northern Collector Tunnel project.

City dwellers have for decades, been faced with perennial water crises including water rationing which will now be a thing of the past according to Water and Sanitation Cabinet Secretary, Erick Muriithi.

Muriithi during a tour of the project noted that Nairobi residents will start getting the essential commodity in their taps in a week's time.

He noted that the Sh9.5 billion project will begin pumping 140 million litres of water daily into Nairobi and surrounding counties as testing and flushing of the 55-kilometre Bulk Water Transmission Pipeline nears completion.

The project draws water from Rivers Gikigie, Mathioya and Irati in Murang'a County and is set to benefit residents in five counties including Nairobi, Machakos, Kajiado, Murang'a and Kiambu.

The Northern Collector Tunnel (NCT) System which was co-financed by the French Development Agency (AFD), the World Bank and the Kenyan government comprises several essential elements, including the Northern Collector Tunnel, the Kigoro Water Treatment Plant, Raw and Treated Water Pipelines, and the Eastern and Western Water Transmission Pipelines.

He noted that the water is being channelled to Ndaka-ini dam in Gatanga sub-county and treated at the Kigoro treatment plant, which is fitted with an automated treatment system able to treat 140,000m3 of water per day, before being pumped to Nairobi, Kiambu and parts of Murang'a.

Muriithi said that after injection of the Kariminu Bulk daily production of 23,000m3 of water per day, Nairobi will get a lion's share of 136,500m3 of water daily.

Machakos will get 10,500m3 while Murang'a, Kiambu and Kajiado will get 6000m3.