The Isiolo phase two water project that has been a recipe for conflict pitting local community members living close to the source in Meru County and the Isiolo Water and Sewerage Company (IWASCO) has now been completed despite a series of protests against the project by the host community.
Residents of Maili saba in Buuri Constituency of Meru County had made their intentions clear that they would not allow IWASCO to draw from Isiolo river the 5,000 cubic metres of water per day that they have been allocated by the Water Resources Management Authority (WRMA).
The water project funded by the National government and the African Development Bank to the tune of Kshs 800 Million has now brought a sigh of relief to Isiolo residents beginning with those living in Chechelesi, Ola Nagele and Ola Jilicha areas within Isiolo Central division who used to travel for over two kilometres in search of the crucial commodity.
Addressing members of the public yesterday during the commissioning of Chechelesi water project which is part of the Mega Isiolo phase two water project, the County governor Godana Doyo said that though the volume of water provided by the project is still not enough, it will go a long way towards changing lives of the people for the better.
He said that when the previous water provision arrangements in Isiolo town were made way back in 1983, the population was only 25,000 unlike now when it has increased to over 100,000 people hence the need to invest more in the sector to cater for the increasing number of people within the town and its environs.
