Download the PDF here: Kenya Trust Announcement August 1 2014
Washington DC, August 1 , 2014 – The US-based Millennium Water Alliance (MWA), the consortium of 15 leading NGOs working in water, sanitation, and hygiene education (WASH), announces creation of a new entity in Kenya to accelerate WASH funding and programming in support of the country’s goals of 100% coverage by 2030.
Former Kenya President Mwai Kibaki, who will serve as the Patron for the Millennium Water Alliance Kenya Trust (MWA-K), declared the Trust will seek to mobilize the country for universal coverage, increasing the pace for Kenyan government’s ongoing devolution of water and sanitation management to the grassroots level.
“The creation of the Trust will bring the partnership of the NGOs to a new level with Kenyan national and local government and other stakeholders,” according to MWA Chairman Malcolm Morris, who joined President Kibaki in June to finalize details for the launch of the Trust. Stanley Murage, a well-known advisor on policy and strategy to the former President, also serves on the MWA-K Board of Directors.
“Today, an average of 93% of WASH funding comes from private sources, only 7% globally comes from philanthropy,” noted Morris. “The NGO role is important and has often been catalytic for progress, but we need a holistic approach with government at the center, strengthening devolved governance to develop fee-based water and sanitation systems in partnership with the private sector, civil society, and the end user.”
Speaking at the event in the Ole Tinga area in Kajiado West constituency, Kajiado County, former President Kibaki spoke about the political unity that is needed to move the country forward to meet the 2030 goals and the foundational role of WASH in that progress. “Over the last one and a half decades, the progress made is visible to all. In recent years, the borehole here, which has transformed the life and fortunes of this place, is operated on electric power, making the supply of water more reliable than ever before,” the former President said.
The MWA-K will monitor progress toward 100% universal coverage by counties, and track resources committed by all stakeholders and results toward the coverage goal, according to MWA Executive Director Rafael Callejas.
The Trust will specifically seek to:
1. Leverage and engage new and existing partnerships and networks across all sectors to advance universal WASH coverage;
2. Strengthen devolved governance structures and institutional arrangements for WASH;
3. Advocate for and support policy and regulatory frameworks for universal WASH coverage;
4. Collectively mobilize resources to increase investment to achieve universal coverage;
5. Facilitate and implement models of success of what a county moving toward universal coverage looks like.
“The MWA Kenya Trust will promote the role of the National Integrated Monitoring and Evaluation System to track the progress of counties toward universal WASH coverage and sustainability by 2030,” Callejas said. “It is also important that we promote acceptance of fee-based approach to develop and sustain integrated water and sanitation systems—water is not a free commodity,” Callejas noted, representing the combined experience of MWA members over many years of WASH implementation in Kenya and around the world.
MWA has been implementing WASH programs in Kenya since 2005, primarily with funding from the United States Agency for International Development. Between 2005 and the end of 2014, MWA will have invested more than $15 million in the rural WASH sector and provided more than 350,000 Kenyans with access to safe water, sanitation, and hygiene services.
The Trust is also supported by MWA’s partners based in The Netherlands – Aqua for All, Acacia Water, Akvo, and MWA member IRC – who already play a major role in MWA’s current Kenya Arid Lands Disaster Risk Reduction – WASH Program. This two-year effort, implemented by four MWA members and funded by USAID, is bringing access to at least 160,000 people. The program has created a dynamic partnership between the Dutch and MWA that will increase the scale of work done through the new Trust.
MWA’s members include Aguayuda, CARE, Catholic Relief Services, Food for the Hungry, Global Water, HELVETAS Swiss Intercooperation, IRC – International Water and Sanitation Center, Lifewater, Living Water International, Pure Water for the World, WaterAid in America, Water For People, Water Missions International, Water.org, and World Vision.
For more information, contact:
Rafael Callejas 202-296-1836 rafael.callejas@mwawater.org
John Sparks 202-296-1833 john.sparks@mwawater.org