Nairobi: The government has assured residents of the Lower Eastern Region that it remains committed to completing the construction of the Thwake Multipurpose Dam, a project expected to benefit 1.2 million people, the Water Secretary, Ministry of Water, Sanitation and Irrigation, Eng. Samuel Alima, has said. Eng. Alima made the assurance on Friday during a visit to the dam by the Executive Director of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Mr. Ronald Justin Cafrine, who led a high-level delegation to assess the progress of the project.
According to Kenya News Agency, Eng. Alima expressed optimism that the government would secure Sh9.6 billion from AfDB to complete Phase 1, which includes concreting the dam face, constructing a bridge connecting Kitui and Makueni counties, and installing hydromechanical equipment and gates. ‘We are progressing well. The dam is 94.2 percent complete. We introduced minor but necessary changes, including increasing the height from 77.3 metres to 80.5 metres to enhance storage capacity after realizing the dam can hold more water,’ Eng. Alima explained.
The Water Secretary disclosed that engineers encountered a weak foundation during construction, requiring excavation of 7 metres across a 50-metre width. The adjustments, coupled with COVID-19-related disruptions, affected the project’s cost and timeline. ‘These variations impacted the overall budget, and that is why we are engaging AfDB to assess the progress and explore additional resources to complete the remaining works of Phase 1,’ he said.
Alima expressed confidence that AfDB would approve the additional funding by the end of March, when the bank’s board is scheduled to meet. In addition, the ministry is in discussions with AfDB regarding the remaining three phases of the project, which include hydropower generation, water supply, and irrigation of 100,000 acres.
‘The project will supply water to Konza Technopolis City. Makueni County Senator Daniel Maanzo expressed concern over delays, pledging to raise the issue in Parliament to expedite completion. The dam is being constructed by the China Gezhouba Group Company (CGGC) and has achieved an overall physical progress of 94.2 percent since work began in March 2019.
