A recently released performance report by the Water Services Regulatory Board (Wasreb) has highlighted Kilifi County’s exceptional achievement in promoting water access. The report reveals that out of all counties outside Nairobi, Kilifi boasts the highest proportion of residents with access to piped water.
As of June 2022, the report indicates that approximately 1.1 million Kilifi residents, constituting 73% of the county’s population, had access to piped water. This commendable coverage rate positions Kilifi County as a leader in water access outside of the capital, Nairobi.
Nairobi, with a population of 4.0 million, still maintains the highest-water access rate of 86.0%, despite a slight drop from 88.0% in the previous reporting period. Following Kilifi, Murang’a emerged as third with 767,825 residents, representing a 71.0% coverage, followed by Kiambu and Embu C.ounties, closing the top five with rates of 700% and 63.0%, respectively.
However, the report also shed light on disparities, identifying West Pokot as the county with the least water coverage. Merely 14,988 residents, constituting only two percent of the county’s population, have access to piped water. Wajir and Narok counties closely followed in second and third positions , with four percent and five percent coverage, respectively.
Despite notable progress achieved in the water sector, the report underscored significant challenges the sector faces. Notably, the sector recorded a marked increase in non-revenue water due to leakages, accounting for a substantial loss of Sh11.2 billion in the year up to June 2022. Wasreb highlighted this situation as unfavorable, impacting utilities’ financial resources required for expanding access.
The report comes at a time when water utilities are grappling with financial constraints due to relatively low water charges amidst high operational and maintenance costs.
Kilifi County ranks high in water access outside Nairobi, reveals Wasreb report
Kilifi county tops water access charts in recent report
