The government has set aside over Sh16 billion to assist 12 counties hardly hit by food and water shortage.
The six-month initiative to be overseen by the Ministry of Water and Irrigation will run from February to July.
Principal Secretary Fred Segor said the assistance will be implemented in two batches which include Sh9.2 billion for the months of February to April and another Sh7.1 billion for May to July.
The 12 counties include Makueni, Machakos, Kitui, Kajiado, Taita Taveta, Narok, Kisumu, Isiolo, Marsabit, Elgeyo Marakwet, Baringo and Homa Bay.
The issue of drought is very strong and the most seriously affected sectors are the water and health sectors,” he said.
The initiative to provide clean drinking water has been made possible with a Sh5 billion support from multinational manufacturer Procter and Gamble in partnership with World Vision
“We look forward to more institutional partnerships that will see citizens benefit despite having the government put in measures to mitigate through the drought,” said Segor.
Speaking in a Nairobi hotel yesterday, the PS said the government will continuously give briefs on the funding of affected areas.
He said the government has disbursed Sh446 million with injection of Sh221 million for phase one which will be used to water track, repair boreholes and buy collapsible tanks.
The drought has caused drying of rivers and also affected the opening of schools in Baringo as more than 10 schools have been closed.
Procter and Gambler Managing Director Vivek Sunder further insisted on the need for institutions to contribute into making the situation better.
“If everyone everywhere had clean water, number of diarrheal deaths would be cut by a great percentage. This shows that there is great need for interventions that will make clean water available to the people in the affected areas,” said Sunder.
According to UNEP, 50 per cent of hospital beds are filled with people suffering from water related diseases.
