AWF grant help Kenyan pastoralists in drought-prone areas

TUNIS, Tunisia (APO) – An estimated 150,000 people from pastoral communities, including students and teachers from six schools based in Kenya’s Baringo, Kiambu West and Laikipia districts, are to benefit from a €690,000 grant from the African Water Facility (AWF) signed by the African Development Bank (AfDB) on Friday, December 7, after being approved on July 6, 2012.

“The goal of this project is to contribute to the mainstreaming of rainwater harvesting and management in response to rural development challenges posed by climate in drought prone regions,” said Gabriel Negatu, AfDB East Africa regional director, shortly after signing the grant agreement. “The project also perfectly aligns with Kenya’s objective to achieve the Millennium Development Goals for water supply and sanitation.”

The grant will support a Kenya Rainwater Association (KRA) pilot program designed to help communities build resilience to droughts and adapt to climate change through Integrated Rainwater Harvesting Management (IRHM), with potential for greater reach in the Horn of Africa.

On average, each €1 contributed by the AWF has attracted €20 in additional follow-up investment. The AWF is entirely funded by Algeria, Australia, Austria, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Burkina Faso, Canada, Denmark, the European Commission, France, Norway, Senegal, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the African Development Bank.

More specifically, the AWF grant will be used to finance the implementation of various activities in Kenya’s three semi-arid districts, including RHM infrastructure development for domestic and productive use; the utilisation of complementary water harvesting technologies to improve livelihoods and generate income; knowledge sharing between community members; and policy advocacy based on tangible benefits and impacts to encourage government and development partners to scale up at national and regional levels.

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