Ruto to travel to Italy in bid to revive Arror, Kimwarer dam projects

President William Ruto has announced plans to travel to Italy next month in renewed efforts to revive stalled water projects in the country.

Speaking during a church service at Iten Sports Ground in Elgeyo Marakwet County on Sunday, January 14, the head of state said he would be visiting the country at the invitation of President Sergio Mattarella.

Ruto said the agenda of the visit would be to seek funding for key water projects and to finalise deals on the government’s plans to revive stalled Arror and Kimwarer dam projects in Elgeyo Marakwet and Itare Dam in Nakuru County.

President Ruto will be accompanied by Elgeyo Marakwet Governor Wisley Rotich and his Nakuru counterpart Susan Kihika.

“To move this county forward we have agreed with your leaders on how to revive roads and water projects which have stalled in this area,” Ruto stated.

“I spoke to the President of Italy where the investors came from and I agreed that I will go with the governors of Elgeyo Marakwet and Nakuru to Italy this month to finish that work,” he added.

The Italian head of state was in Kenya in March last year for bilateral talks with his Kenyan counterpart.

After the meeting, the two leaders announced that they had agreed to restart the construction of Arror, Kimwarer and Itare dams in a deal that will also see the government exempted from paying in excess of Ksh12 billion to Italian firms for breach of contract.

As part of the agreement, Ruto announced that the two countries had agreed to withdraw cases pending court regarding a protracted row that led to the cancellation of the projects by the former Jubilee administration.

He explained that the Kenyan government had agreed to withdraw cases filed against Italian firms including CMC Di Ravenna – Itinera JV that had won tenders to construct the dams which were mired in controversy and whose construction was stopped in September 2019 under a cloud of graft allegations.

Retired President Uhutu Kenyatta had ordered the cancellation of the projects, arguing that they were conduits for embezzlement of public funds.

Former Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich who was among suspects charged with graft in the Ksh63 billion case was acquitted last month.

Trial Magistrate Eunice Nyutu, while freeing Rotich and eight other accused persons, said there was no evidence to warrant them being placed on their defence.

“All the accused persons in this case are hereby acquitted under section 210 due to lack of evidence as a result of the reckless dereliction of duty by the prosecution,” the magistrate said.

The magistrate, however, faulted the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for the collapse of the case, saying the matter appeared “to be a well-choreographed acquittal”.