Water needs in the country may not be met by the year 2030, as the government loses nearly half of water revenues to unscrupulous traders.
According to Water CS Simon Chelugui, non-revenue water is at 42 per cent in the country, meaning only slightly over half of the water used in the country gives the state any income.
He spoke at a dinner for engineers’ body, the Institute of Engineers of Kenya on Thursday night.
He said the ministry is working towards reducing the amount of non-revenue waters to 20 per cent, which is the acceptable level.
He added that his ministry needs Sh1.75 trillion to achieve universal access to the life-giving commodity. So far, only Sh45 billion is available mostly from donor funds for investing into water and water resources against a Sh100 billion hole every year.
Kenya is considered a water scarce country, with a per capita water availability of less than 600 cubic metres, which is below the global threshold of 1000 cubic metres per capita.
He said the Water Act 2016, once in force, will help address some of these challenges, which include diminishing water resources and low funding for the sector.
He said the National Water Policy, now at advanced stages, will come in handy to help plug needs.
The engineering body said a focused policy on underground space planning, use and management, will enable the channeling of water to more consumers around the country.
