Boost For Lake Naivasha Conservation Efforts

The government will pump in Sh40m while UK retailers and Germany organization GTZ will add te remaining Ksh50m.

This emerged during the launch of the Naivasha Imarisha water stewardship project which was held in a Naivasha hotel

The Principal Secretary Ministry of Environment Richard Lesiyampe who was present during the launch was full of praise for the project which aims to conserve the lake.

Lesiyampe said plans were underway to create a new management board next month after the previous one was disbanded last year.

"We have done this as a commitment and demonstration by the government to show support for the project to improve environmental conservation," said Lesiyampe.

During the 10 month absence of a management board, the project faced challenges in the use of donor funds

The Lake Basin Civic Society Organizations chairman Prof. Karanja Njoroge has called for accountability and transparency in the management of the funds.

"The community feels that in the meantime Imarisha is not doing what it was mandated to do by the community because of lack of an active management board," added Karanja

Imarisha chairman Richard Fox confirmed that foreign stake holders have already committed Sh50m to be distributed evenly to all the 12 Water Resource Users Associations to construct water pans, tanks and plant trees towards conservations efforts.

The stake holders who were present at the meeting however proposed that the new Imarisha Board must be all inclusive.

By Morgan Mueke