Anxiety as Date Set to Impound Water to Mwache Dam

By Caroline Katana

Email, thecoastnewspaper@gmail.com

The government is targeting October 1, 2026 to begin impounding water at the Mwache Multipurpose Dam in Kwale County, as construction of the major water project enters its final stages.

Water, sanitation and irrigation cabinet secretary Eric Mugaa said the main dam wall was now about 90 per cent complete and the government was working to ensure the project was ready for impoundment by October.

The 84-metre-high dam is expected to hold 136 billion litres of water and will become a key part of the Coast water supply system with the water intended for treatment and supply to Mombasa and parts of Kwale.

Mugaa said the government had approved an additional Ksh13.6 billion, equivalent to about US$105 million to ensure the project was completed and its benefits reach the people of the Coast.

He described Mwache as a key component of the region’s water supply network which also draws water from sources including Mzima Springs, Baricho Wellfield, Marere and Tiwi boreholes.

The CS noted that some existing infrastructure is old. The Mzima pipeline, for example, was built in 1952 while the long-distance pumping of water also presents power-cost challenges.

Mwache is therefore being developed as part of a wider system rather than as a replacement for all existing sources.

As the dam approaches impoundment, the government is also putting in place the infrastructure required to treat and transmit the water.

Water and sanitation principal secretary (PS) Julius Korir said a contract had been awarded for the water treatment plant with the contractor expected to break ground by mid-September.

The plant will treat 186,000 cubic metres of water per day.

Two transmission pipeline contracts have also been awarded: one for the South Coast and another for the North Coast while a pipeline to take water to Mombasa Island is still under procurement.

The PS said the downstream works are also on schedule, adding that Mwache will augment water supplies from existing sources such as Sabaki and Mzima Springs.

The wider system is expected to provide water to more than 1.5 million coastal residents.

The progress, however, extends beyond the main dam wall.

Project manager and water secretary Engineer Samwel Alima said the overall project was at 81 per cent with the main dam at 88 per cent. The lower check dam at about 87 per cent and the schools component at 99 per cent.

The lower check dam is designed to control siltation from the highly eroded catchment and protect the main reservoir.

The project also includes an upper check dam, although Mugaa said work on that component has not started because it falls under a different package.

For communities living around the project area, the dam has also meant relocating social facilities and restoring livelihoods.

Nlunguni Primary School, Fulugani Primary School and Mwache ECD were relocated because they fell within the dam area.

Alima said the schools are almost complete, with only minor works such as cleaning and final paintwork remaining, and are expected to be ready for learners in the third term.

The schools have been fitted with solar power systems to reduce operating costs.

Before they are handed over, they will undergo detailed inspection involving the Ministry of Education, Kwale County Government, school Boards of Management and local communities.

Alima said the handover was expected in about two weeks.

The government has also introduced a livelihood restoration programme for people displaced by the dam.

Korir said households that chose livestock farming were being supported with cow sheds, goat sheds, and chicken pens while those starting businesses are being supported with premises for three months to help them settle and begin operating.

Equipment for hair salons, car washes and motorbikes has also been procured and is being received, inspected and prepared for handover to beneficiaries.

Other project works are continuing alongside the construction of the dam.

A 15-kilometre road is among the remaining works, together with the relocation of some power connections.

The PS said the National Land Commission had completed valuation and gazettement for land acquired for the road with compensation payments expected to begin in September once the remaining process was completed.

A cultural centre is also being developed, with Korir saying the community participated in the design process and provided input.

The project also includes a police post, which is ongoing, and a clinic that is being built.

Mugaa said a livelihood restoration consultant was on the ground to oversee the process and ensure affected residents were not treated unfairly.

Mugaa said the importance of Mwache goes beyond household water supply, linking reliable water to agricultural and industrial production, public health, food security, investment and livelihoods.

He said adequate water would help attract industries and support economic activity in Kwale, Mombasa and the wider Coast region.

He also said the reservoir could become a tourism attraction once water was impounded.

With the government targeting October 1 for the start of impoundment, the focus is now shifting from building the dam to preparing the treatment, transmission and community infrastructure needed around it.

For the Coast, the significance of Mwache will ultimately be measured by whether the water stored in the reservoir can be treated and delivered reliably to the more than 1.5 million residents the wider system is expected to serve.