KISUMU, Kenya, Nov 14 – A Netherlands organization in collaboration with the County Government of Kisumu has launched an ambitious program to the tune of Sh. 4.9 billion for a period of over 10 years to address the perennial flooding within the Nyando Basin.
The Board of Ahero/Awasi Municipality headed by its chairman Prof Humphrey Oborah says the programme has the capacity to deal with the flooding.
Prof Oborah says flooding has remained a menace for the locals’ time immemorial and any support geared towards its elimination is welcomed.
“Coupled with my international networks, I have brought international partners known as trust 2 impact from the Netherlands to help us deal with flooding,” he said.
He noted that the organization has already signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the County Government of Kisumu for the interventions in the flood prone areas.
Prof Oborah says most of the flood victims have been living on food donations by the national and county governments.
“It is time we put an end to food donations to our people by coming up with measures that will deal with this flood menace,” he said.
He says the solutions to the flooding must be homegrown.
He noted that the program aims to reclaim the ecological system destroyed within the Nyando region besides re-afforestation of the degraded hilly areas within Awasi, Muhoroni and Nyakach areas.
Speaking in Kisumu on Wednesday during the official opening of the organization’s office located at Africa Talent Campus, Prof Oborah says the community stands to benefit from the program immensely.
“When we finally grow trees and crops with science and data in the background, we can be sure we will increase crop production and increase tree cover to tap on the carbon credit,” he said.
Prof Oborah says the program has short, medium and long term goals with the short term starting with a pilot project in Nyando Sub County.
He says the project aims to identify the right crops, trees to be planted by the community.
“In the medium term and with finances from our international partners, we will go big on agricultural production, agroforestry and afforestation,” he said.
Kisumu County Assembly Majority Leader who is also representing Ahero ward MCA Ken Ooko says the step to combat flooding issues within Nyando will go a long way in alleviating sufferings of the locals.
Ooko says the project, which also has a component on building dykes, aims to unite the locals and experts in creating sustainable and locally tailored solutions to address issues affecting climate change.
“Every year, this region receives a lot of rainfall that leaves a trail of destruction to property and loss of lives and we are happy to learn that solution is now coming our way,” he said.
He told the people of Nyando to own the project, terming it a timely intervention to the annual flooding menace.
Ooko says the successful implementation of the project will help in its scaling up to other sub counties within the county.
An official from the Netherlands organization, says they will work closely with the communities, have them empowered to develop local solutions for local problems.
The forum brought flood victims drawn from Nyando, Kisumu East and Muhoroni, where they expressed optimism on the program.
