• State-funded irrigation was held back by colonial law that was finally changed in 2019
• It has now expanded but lacks enough funding and is stalled by compensation claims
Kenya is yet to exploit its full potential in irrigation. To date, only about half a million acres are under irrigation against the potential of three million acres.
The country needs to put more resources into irrigation due to its enormous benefits.
Our writer Agatha Ngotho spoke to National Irrigation Authority CEO Gitonga Mugambi on irrigation issues and his plans to change the narrative.
In summary, what is the role of the National Irrigation Authority?
The role of the National Irrigation Authority is to irrigate this country. It is well stipulated within our vision to ensure we provide irrigation water to every irrigable acre in this country. If I may elaborate further, I would say that we are supposed to irrigate all the national and public schemes in the country by offering technical support services and ensuring sustainability of the irrigation project(s).
What informed the decision to change from the National Irrigation Board to an Authority?
The National Irrigation Board used to operate under an old Act, which was enacted in July 1967. It was during the time when we had just gotten independent, so it was informed by a lot of transition issues from a colonial country to an independent one.
Almost 60 years down the line, there was a need to change that and redirect irrigation in the modern Kenya. We released that the former Irrigation Act we were operating under when we were the National Irrigation Board was restricting the institution to only seven public schemes, yet we needed to move to all parts of the country. To do that, we had to have this Act reviewed to legally allow the institution to move and develop all parts of the country.
What has changed since the transition from a Board to an Authority?
The enactment happened on August 17, 2019, and since then, a lot has changed in the sense that now we are in more than 300 sites across the country. More so, we have seen activities expand and not only in the transition areas but in new areas. We have been able to engage the communities and make them understand the need for irrigation.
Do you do anything else outside irrigation?
95 percent of our activities are irrigation based but as we do this, we also do other activities that supplement irrigation. For instance, capacity building to communities and farmers who are receiving this infrastructure. We do Corporate Social Responsibility-CSR activities such as distribution of seedlings, we also support education in remote areas like Turkana where NIA has done a lot of irrigation projects. We realized that there are children with no schools so we have partnered with those communities to help them develop some of these facilities for the good of sustaining the projects.
What is the current acreage under irrigation in Kenya?
Currently, Kenya has 530,000 acres developed and irrigation infrastructure put in place. This is for both private and public sectors.
What is Kenya’s potential as far as irrigation is concerned?
The potential for irrigation without any storage of water is about 1.9 million acres. In case we add water storage, it will move from 1.9 million acres to more than three million acres that can be irrigated in the country.
But we need to open up more areas so we can commercialise farming under irrigation. Today, Mwea is the biggest irrigation scheme we have in the country and one of the success stories. It is 25,000 acres, and we are working to expand by 10,000 acres to make it 35,000 acres. We would want to have more such irrigation projects and it is possible because these places are there.
What challenges you have experienced in implementing your mandate?
There are quite a number. One is getting the community to adapt to irrigation. Some move very fast and utilise the irrigation infrastructure. But in other areas, the uptake is a bit slow, and you will need a lot of capacity building. You also need to change their mindsets so they know that with irrigation, they can be self-reliant.
The government should also allocate more resources to irrigation. To date, what is allocated is not enough to cover what we would want to do. The 2021-22 financial budgetary allocation for irrigation was Sh11 billion but we required Sh40 billion.
Land compensation is another challenge, which sometimes diverts resources from the main infrastructure. This is an area we need to look at because sometimes we have resources that can do an irrigation project and complete it, but when the issue of compensation comes in, it diverts resources and you can’t move. It also comes in with a lot of activism and it becomes sometimes very difficult. There is a need to set standards and limitations as to how much should be compensated.
What irrigation projects do you hold dear and why?
I hold Mwea Irrigation dear because I have a personal attachment to it. This is where I started my irrigation career as a young person and from there, I learnt a lot and gained a lot of experience, which I believe guides me in the things I do today.
Secondly, Mwea is a success story in the sense that this is an area where we have the biggest irrigation scheme, covering 25,000 acres as of today, and you will find it is utilised to the last inch.
Do you think Kenyans are getting value for money as far as the Galana-Kulalu Food Security Irrigation project is concerned?
We have restructured Galana both in terms of finances and implementation, and with a new restructured approach, there is value for money which Kenyans are getting now.
What is the status of Thiba Dam and when will the country start seeing fruits from this project?
Thiba Dam is being built in Kirinyaga county to support irrigation activities in Mwea. The effect of the dam is that we will be able to move from the current production of about 25,000 acres, which is one crop per year, to 35,000 acres, which will be two crops per year.
Right now we are at around 66 per cent complete. We are within the budget estimates, which is within the contract, and we expect to complete that project by December this year. The dam costs Sh8.2 billion but we will be able to complete it at a figure less than that.
Is there any link between your projects and the Big Four Agenda?
We are in the middle and have a direct impact on the Big Four Agenda in the sense that when we provide irrigation, we provide food. When people farm under irrigation, we have food, and food security is one of the main agendas. Secondly, we provide jobs. Our studies have shown that for every acre you irrigate, you create five jobs. As you produce, you are producing raw materials to support industries, hence industrialisation, in addition to improving the incomes of farmers, and they are able to afford housing. People who are food-secure are naturally healthy, so less sickness, and they can also afford to meet their hospital bills.
Is there any model country that you think we should borrow from as far as irrigation is concerned?
India and Egypt. Egypt uses River Nile, which comes from Kenya, and they are able to irrigate millions of acres, and we can do the same. India is a big country with a huge population but they are able to feed themselves. They have taken the approach of irrigation very seriously and have invested a lot in irrigation. They have even gone ahead to do subsidies to irrigation development. One of the programmes we are doing now, household water harvesting, is borrowed from a model being implemented in India. We assist farmers in doing a water pan, which can irrigate one acre.
Most farmers are still dependent on rain to farm. What is your view on that?
It is a situation we find ourselves in because as a country, we have not invested and we need to get out of that and ensure farmers are provided with irrigation infrastructure. There is climate change and the rains are erratic. So when you rely on rain, you can either harvest or not, “ni pata potea”. But with water harvesting and also a conveyance system, the farmer is assured of food and more to sell, hence food security. This is a situation we find ourselves in but we must purpose to get out of it, and the only way is by putting resources into irrigation.
The NIA was recently ranked among the top parastatals by the Ministry of Public Service report on Performance Contracts. What is your take on that?
We were ranked number five but we expected to be number one. Our space is number one and we will get there.
What does this ranking mean to you and the institution?
This means with hard work, you get good results. This also shows with resilience and focus, an institution can move, but more so, it calls for management that is working together in one direction and talking to each other. At the same time, working well with the board and the ministry and with that, anything is possible.
You feel happy when you see people whose hope has been restored, and it makes you wake up early in the morningGitonga Mugambi
Are there any success stories you are proud of?
We have come from low-ranking to at least somewhere, although we feel there is room for improvement. We have projects we have done successfully, like Thiba dam, which is ongoing. We have successfully restructured the Galana Kulalu project, and now if you go to Galana, you will find a success story. It is no longer a shame and it is something one can be happy to be associated with.
If you go to Mount Kenya, we have a project called Muringa Banana, which is covering 6,000 acres and is doing very well. If you go to Rift Valley, for example in Laikipia, we have a project called Mutaro, which has been completed. Our happiness is when the beneficiaries of these projects are happy and utilising the project.
We have doubled the size of Ahero. Since Independence, when Ahero was completed, it has been 2,500 acres, but today, it is 6,000 acres. Other success stories are in Wajir, Mandera, Kajiado, West Pokot and Turkana counties.
You feel happy when you see people whose hope has been restored, and it makes you wake up early in the morning.
The water household project is another success story in that we go to individual family farms for those who are willing and we do a water pan, which can irrigate one acre. So far we have done 25,000 water pans in 37 counties, and our target is to do 125,000 water pans across the country with good resources.
We are also proud that we have revised the cost of doing irrigation from an average of Sh600,000 per acre to Sh180–220,000 per acre. The same thing with the dams, which we have reduced from about Sh700–800 per cubic meter to Sh180.
You are serving your second and last term as the CEO. What would you want to be remembered for?
I would want to be remembered by how many acres I have put under irrigation. To date, I have done more than 200,000 and my target by the time I leave here is to reach about 300,000. This means I will have doubled what has been done before I took over.
Secondly, I will be happy to be remembered for bringing the cost of doing business down.
Another reason is to have the Irrigation Act 2019 enacted. It has taken more than 20 years, and this called for a lot of concerted effort and lobbying and working with the ministry to have it go through the parliamentary process and have it assented to by the President.
Another issue is having restructured Galana Kulalu and giving it a new direction, and more so being part of the team that has made this institution be respected. Today I feel proud being associated with an institution that is recognised positively by Kenyans.
What is your parting shot?
We need this county to appreciate irrigation. Irrigation can create a lot of wealth for this country and the potential for irrigation is enormous. We are carrying out new studies, which are showing that with this water harvesting approach we have, especially in Northeastern, we can have more than 10 million acres irrigated, up from the recorded three million acres.
Irrigation gives life through feeding people, and it is also a peacemaker. Some of these areas that have insecurity over people raiding others for animals, we need to give them irrigation and not only use guns to silence them but use irrigation and water. We also need to purpose and put more resources into irrigation because it has a lot of benefits.
Edited by T Jalio