Kisii County Deputy Governor Dr. Robert Monda has called on residents of Kisii to plant environmentally friendly trees as one way of solving water crises witnessed in some areas.
Dr. Monda urged farmers to remove eucalyptus trees along river banks and replace them with indigenous ones saying numerous eucalyptus planted on water catchment areas have led to drying of rivers and springs.
He was speaking at Mosisa Primary school in Masimba ward, Nyaribari Masaba sub county during a tree planting exercise aimed at promoting sustainable energy in the county.
The function was also attended by area Member of County Assembly (MCA) Bouse Mairura, area Rural Electrification and Renewable Energy (REREC) Nyanza Regional Manager Eng. Nicholas Langat, Kenya Forestry Service representative Charles Nyatichi, NEMA representatives among other senior national and county officers.
Noting that locals especially school going girls were travelling tens of kilometers in search of water, The DG indicated that the county government will construct a borehole at the school to serve not only the primary school but also the nearby secondary school and the community.
The DG also promised that the county will construct ECDE classrooms at the school lamenting that the learners are learning in a dilapidated structure and tasked area Member of Parliament to construct modern classrooms as the existing ones were in a sorry state.
He also vowed to have the playground levelized to enable learners to enjoy co-curricular activities.
The DG said the Hon. Simba Arati led administration in collaboration with REREC plans to Identify areas without electricity coverage and also do mapping to identify areas where electricity coverage is higher than others and the areas where electricity coverage is lower and do planning to cover those areas in an effort to ensure equality in connectivity in the County.
Mr. Langat noted that there has been unequalled utilization of the existing transformers and called on the county government to collaborate with REREC in maximization of existing transformers so that these transformers are fully utilized.
The DG said the maximization will ensure reduced costing / capital for connectivity by ensuring maximization of transformers. It will also lead to improved Energy Efficiency (EE).
“There is also a need to identify public institutions that are critical like hospitals and other health facilities that are not yet connected to electricity and can take advantage of maximization so that they can be given priority,” said Dr. Monda.
Nyatichi observed that Kisii county has achieved the recommended 10 percent forest cover.
“We have surpassed the targeted forest cover as we are at 15.06 percent. On the other hand, our tree cover stands at 26.6 percent,” said the forestry officer.
Ends..
