The water pans will enable the households in the dry county to harvest about 100,000 cubic metres of water every time it rains.
This will enable farmers to engage in irrigation farming during the dry seasons.
Irrigation Principal Secretary Ephantus Kimotho addresses journalists after
launching the water pans project in Laikipia /ALICE WAITHERA
The Ministry of Water, Sanitation and Irrigation has started a programme that will see 100 households benefit from water pans in Laikipia County.
The project is aimed at irrigating 100 acres and is expected to be completed in the next three months according to Irrigation Principal Secretary Ephantus Kimotho.
The water pans will enable the households in the dry county to harvest about 100,000 cubic metres of water every time it rains, enabling the farmers to engage in irrigation farming during the dry seasons.
“We call it a household project. With each household having about five people, this project will benefit about 500 individuals,” the PS said, adding that nationally, the project has benefitted about 1,000 households.
Each acre, when well irrigated, has the capacity to produce harvests worth Sh400,000 a year, he said.
Kimotho added that though Laikipia is one of the arid and semi-arid lands counties, a lot of water flows to waste during the rains, leaving farmers with severe water shortages when the rains stop.
He said the county has a few permanent rivers that farmers can use for extended farming activities and that the project will cost the government Sh29 million and have an annual return of Sh40 million.
“The people are happy about it but they have requested that we provide dam liners for sustainability of the pans. We have explained that we have a new programme called Revitalised Asals where we are using blended finance. The farmer gives something small and the government also chips in to ensure sustainability of the project,” the PS said.
He also pledged to dispatch a team from his department to de-silt community water pans that have been minimally used due to siltation.
“The community has requested that we de-silt the pans and we have seen some of the people living near them are doing some crop and livestock farming,” he added.
The PS said such programmes enable equitable distribution of irrigation water in the country and support small-scale farmers to become food secure and earn a living from farming.
He encouraged the youths to venture into agriculture that he said has proven to be profitable with the availability of irrigation water.
