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BUSIA, UGANDA | THE INDEPENDENT | At least 300,000 people are set to benefit from the new Angololo Water Resources Development Project. The initiative is a joint effort between the governments of Kenya and Uganda in collaboration with the Nile Equatorial Lakes Subsidiary Action Program (NELSAP) of the Nile Basin Initiative (NBI).
The project, funded by the African Development Bank (AfDb) and the NEPAD-IPPF Special Fund, was first identified in 2010 and is aligned with Kenya’s Vision 2030 and Uganda’s Vision 2040. It is set to bring direct benefits to more than 300,000 people in Busia and Bungoma Counties (Kenya) and Tororo, Namisindwa, and Manafwa Districts (Uganda).
The project, worth 502 Billion Shillings, is aimed at enhancing food, water, and energy security while boosting regional trade and cooperation.
To effectively serve its intended purpose, the project includes a 40-meter-high composite dam with 31.6 million cubic meters storage capacity, a 1.3 MW mini-hydropower plant to boost rural electrification, with the plan to add solar floating pontoons in the reservoir, generating 20 MW.
Others include a 4,000-hectare irrigation scheme for year-round farming, a domestic and livestock water supply network to serve over 270,000 people.
According to the Regional Coordinator NELSAP-CU, Dr. Isaac Alukwe, the project is expected to lead to improved food security, public health, job creation, and resilience to climate change, with special attention to vulnerable groups such as women, youth, and people with disabilities. “Farmers will benefit from access to irrigated land, improved yields, and reduced dependence on unpredictable rainfall. Households will gain access to clean and reliable water, reducing time spent fetching water and improving health outcomes,” he said.
He added that women will benefit from reduced water burden, new business opportunities in farming and trading, schools, health centres, and businesses will also benefit from reliable electricity and water supply, unlocking new potential for community development.
Dr. Callist Tindimugaya, the Director for the Directorate of Water Resources Management (DWRM) in the Ministry of Water and Environment, says that the Nile Basin created a Basin investment program to identify programmes and Angololo came to fruition due to the trust and confidence and a good environment created by the political leaders, which made it easier for the technical people.
Dr. Florence Adongo, the Executive Director for the Nile Basin Initiative, said that the agreement represents a transition from years of negotiations into a concretised project. She said that shared waters serve as a catalyst for peace and prosperity.
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