It is discouraging that whenever there is a prolonged drought, Kenyans pray for rains in the hope this will ease hunger and reduce the cost of common foodstuff, especially for the working class living in urban areas. However, when rains eventually come, they turn from being a blessing into something akin to a curse. This is a trend that policy makers must seek to address and reverse.

First, there is no reason why counties have not put in place mechanisms to dam flood water, yet the political leadership at the grassroots know that there will be heavy rains at various times in the year. This is a matter that must be addressed urgently and prioritised perennially to ensure that the millions of cubic metres of rainwater are stored and used productively to generate wealth.

It is a tragedy that Kenya — a land in the tropics and with largely predictable weather patterns — is classified as water-scarce, yet the country has many rivers that drain their water either in lakes or in the Indian Ocean. The government, with leadership from local leaders, ought to put in place a system that will ensure sustainable use of the water at all points in a river so that those upstream can enjoy as much as their counterparts downstream.  Lack of regulation in water use and diversion remains one of the problems that have caused water scarcity and is, worryingly, a source of conflict between communities and households. This is something that must be addressed to promote water access and water justice.

Secondly, there needs to be a deliberate medium term programme to build dams in all counties with a view to trapping rainwater. This is the only way to end the cycle of hunger that has affected more than half of the country every time rains are delayed. As PD has proposed in the past, there needs to be a programme that includes private sector players — including home builders — in the bigger project of making Kenya water secure by requiring them to install water harvesting systems in all new buildings. Indeed, compliance with this proviso should be one of the requirements for building plan approvals by counties.

Water is a source of life. It should not be viewed as a problem to the populace. The only way to change this narrative is to put in place a water policy, first for the national and secondly for the county governments. Once the policy is in place there should be a system of reward and punishment to ensure that those responsible for implementing it actually do.