Varsity donates Ksh10 million towards National Water Summit

Mount Kenya University (MKU) has donated Ksh10 million towards the National Water Summit.

Board of Trustees Chairman Simon N. Gicharu said the money will supplement the efforts of other sponsors namely the Ministry of Water, Environment and Natural Resources, County Government of Turkana, UNESCO, Institute of Capacity Building, and the Nation Media Group.

The National Water Summit will be held at Kristie’s Camp, Turkana, between October 9th and 11th this year.  Themed, Water for socio-economic development, the Summit will deliberate on groundwater management not only in Turkana, but the entire Turkana region.
“The main speakers will be some of the foremost researchers on water issues in the world,” said Dr Vincent Gaitho, chair of the Summit organizing committee. “Water is a trans boundary resource and that is why we are targeting the best experts from the world.”
The Summit participants will produce a working document of policy recommendations that address sustainable development of underground water resource.

This document will be shared with various stakeholders to inform policy and decision-making.
Objectives of the National Water Summit:

• To assemble key players to deliberate on sustainable groundwater development and management in vulnerable areas.
• Suggest strategies for local community involvement in the exploitation and management of water resources.
• Propose coping strategies in the face of harnessing of groundwater in Turkana County.
• To make policy recommendations that would guide sustainable groundwater development and management.
• To identify capacity and research gaps in groundwater management.

Last year, it was reported that Turkana has an estimated 250 billion cubic metres of ground water, enough to last the country 70 years. Mount Kenya University has a Campus in Lodwar. The university is constructing a Ksh200million Research Centre in the outskirts of Lodwar town, which will be integral in generating knowledge to harness the vast resources in Turkana County and beyond.
“We are committed to generating more knowledge to help us utilize existing resources in a more sustainable way,” said MKU Vice Chancellor Professor Stanley Waudo.

For more information, please contact:
Boniface Murigi,
Marketing Director,
Mount Kenya University,
Email: bmurigi@mku.ac.ke
Tel: 020-2338146/0721 779 133