President Ruto unveils plan to construct 50 mega dams in Northern Kenya and Coast
President Ruto unveils plan to construct 50 mega dams in Northern Kenya and Coast
The construction of 50 mega dams will enable the irrigation of 1.5 million acres of land in northern and coastal regions, making them Kenya’s new food baskets, President William Ruto has said.
The President explained that through irrigation, the two regions that had been declared low-potential areas will now become high-potential agricultural producers.
“In our plan for placing 2.5 million acres of land under irrigation, 1.5 million of those will be from Northern Kenya and the Coast regions,” he said.
The President was speaking in Masalani in Ijara Constituency, Garissa County, during the wedding ceremony of Mr Mohammed Noordin Mohamed Y. Haji, son of National Intelligence Service Director-General Noordin Haji, and Jamila Mohammed Abdulgader Al Sawae.
The President said this is part of the government’s plan to strengthen the country’s food security to make Kenya a net exporter of agricultural products.
Explaining that one of the 50 mega dams, the High Grand Falls, will be built along the Tana River in Tharaka-Nithi and Kitui counties, and will supply water to Garissa, support irrigation and make it a key food basket in the country.
“The biggest beneficiary of the High Grand Falls Dam, which is probably going to be the largest dam in Kenya, is going to help irrigate between 300,000 and 400,000 acres of land,” he said.
For a very long time, the President noted, Kenya has only used 15 per cent of the land to grow and produce food.
“It is time to expand from that 15 per cent of Kenya that has rainfall to the rest of the 85 per cent that has no rainfall by storing water for irrigation,” he said.
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The President said irrigation farming will make food production more predictable and reliable.
On roads, the President said the government is tarmacking the 410 kilometres Lamu-Ijara-Garisaa- Garbatula Road noting that it is 50 percent done.
Additionally he said that the 750 Isiolo-Mandera road will be done and completed under the current administration bringing the total road network under construction in North Eastern region to 1,100km. He said the road is the longest ever built by any administration in Kenya.
Additionally, he pointed out that the government is mapping out 28,000km for tarmacking across the country.
“We have done 22,000km in 60 years. My plan is to build an extra 28,000km to connect every part of Kenya,” he said.
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