Financial setbacks stall Kenya’s dam construction plan, says Water CS
Mugaa added that a more accurate list of progress could be provided for smaller dams, noting that the cost of building water infrastructure remains high and is dependent on long-term investment.
The government’s promise to build 100 mega dams remains far from being realised, with Water Cabinet Secretary Eric Mugaa confirming that not a single large dam has been completed since the projects were launched.
Speaking before Senate on Wednesday, Mugaa laid bare the financial hurdles facing the ambitious water programme, saying that many of the planned dams were expected to be delivered through public-private partnerships — a model that has struggled to attract investors.
“Most of them were scheduled to be implemented under public-private partnerships,” he said. “Unfortunately, investments in water have not been very lucrative… because our tariffs are not cost recovery.”
The Cabinet Secretary said that several major dam projects that are currently under construction but are facing delays linked to financial challenges. “For large dams, we have not completed any of them,” he told the House.
Mugaa added that a more accurate list of progress could be provided for smaller dams, noting that the cost of building water infrastructure remains high and is dependent on long-term investment.
His statement comes nearly a year after former Water CS Alice Wahome told the Senate that her ministry was struggling to meet President William Ruto’s target due to funding shortages. She noted that while the commitment to deliver mega dams was still intact, the reality on the ground was proving more difficult.
President Ruto had earlier declared that his government planned to build 100 mega dams, nearly 1,000 small dams, and over 3,800 water pans. During a live address to the nation on August 2, 2023, the President said that the government had already begun by advertising the first 33 dams.
“Our stretch is to do 100 mega dams. To do close to 1,000 small dams. Close to 3,800 water pans across the country,” Ruto said at the time.
The plan was one of the flagship pledges of his campaign, designed to address long-standing water scarcity in various parts of the country. But according to Mugaa, the reliance on private sector funding has not yielded the expected pace of progress.
While some work is underway, the government is yet to deliver a completed mega dam under the current administration — raising questions about timelines and the viability of the investment model adopted.
