Thwake PSC meets, discusses PIT work plan and budget

Wote, Makueni, Friday, September 10, 2021

Members of the Thwake Multipurpose Dam Project Steering Committee (PSC) recently met to discuss the progress of ongoing works and the proposed work plan and budget.
During a three-day consultative meeting which took place at a Wote Hotel between September 8 -10, the PSC – which is a critical decision making organ of the project – held discussions with members of the Project Implementation Team (PIT) who took them through a detailed presentation on the progress of works, proposed budget and work plan for the financial year 2021/2022.
PSC which is chaired by the Water Secretary, Ministry of Water, Sanitation and Irrigation who is also the Project Engineer, Eng. SAO Alima, lauded the progress and urged for expedition of some bottlenecks which may delay the timelines.
During a recent visit to the site by H.E President Uhuru Kenyatta early July, the State expressed a wish to have the Dam Project fast-tracked for completion in June 2022.

The Government of Kenya and the African Development Bank (AfDB) are jointly funding the project expected to change millions of lives in the lower eastern regions of Kenya.

The mega dam, whose treated water is poised to benefit approximately 1.3 million people drawn from the rural areas of Kitui and Makueni Counties and those in Konza Techno City, is currently at 58.64 per cent.

The PSC which incorporates the County Commissioner, Makueni County Mr. Maalim Mohammed, also comprises membership drawn from the stakeholder ministries and key State agencies including National Treasury, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Energy, Ministry of Information, Communications and Technology and agencies such as National Environmental Management Authority, National Construction Authority, Water Resources Authority and Tanathi Water Works Development Agency.
The team also had a chance to visit the site and tour several key components including the tunnels, spillway, dam embankment, engineers’ offices and other areas.
Prior to the site tour, PSC members were also taken through a presentation by the the Consultant –SMEC, where they were updated on progress.
Later, members of the PIT, led by Eng. David Onyango, took the PSC through a detailed presentation touching on the civil works and associated activities, procurement of contracts, gender and social development, environment, health and safety, program financial management, communication, advocacy and publicity, monitoring and evaluation and risk management.
Thwake Multipurpose Water Development Program (TMWDP) is designated as a Vision 2030 project by the Government of Kenya (GoK) and anchored on the Big4 agenda to fulfill the long-term country’s development ambition in the areas of water, energy, agriculture and flood mitigation. The program is being implemented in four phases including construction of 80.5m high multi-purpose dam with a storage of 688m m3 of water, development of hydro-power generating system with an installed capacity of approximately 20MW, development of water supply and sanitation infrastructure to supply an estimated volume of 150,000 m3 per day of treated water to serve approximately 1.3 Million people drawn from the rural areas of Kitui, Makueni and Konza Techno City and irrigation scheme development to ultimately irrigate 40,000 Hectares of land.
Ends