admin_county July 17, 2020

Nakuru County Water Service Providers Scoop 1/3 of the Awards from the National Regulator WASREB

Water service providers under the County Government of Nakuru bagged 6 Performance Awards from the Water Service Regulatory Board (WASREB). This is according to the recently released Impact Report: A Performance Report of Kenyas Water Services Sector (2018/19), Issue No. 12/2020. 

Under the able leadership of H.E. Hon Lee Kinyanjui, the water and sanitation sector has undergone exemplary growth with Nakuru County Urban Water Service Provider (NAWASCO) posting an impressive performance score of 144/200 compared to the previous score of 127/200. 

Of the 87 water service providers assessed and regulated by WASREB, the Nakuru Water and Sanitation Services Company (NAWASCO) was ranked 3rd overall in the Top Performing Utilities Category. Classified as a Very Large Utility, NAWASCO was preceded only by NYEWASCO (in 1st Place) followed by ELDOWAS (in 2nd Place) both of which have relatively lower scopes in terms of population, service area coverage and the annual turn-over. 

NAWASCO was also ranked as the Best Utility as per the Governance Indicator. The County Executive Committee Member in Charge of Water, Environment, Energy and Natural Resources, Eng. Festus K. Ngeno, who is also the Chairman of the Caucus of CECs in Charge of Water, Sanitation, Environment & Climate Change at the Council of Governors (CoG), attributes this to the manner in which the County Government of Nakuru grants autonomous operations and support to its utilities.

The three water service providers in Nakuru County (NAWASCO, NARUWASCO & NAIVAWASCO) not only have a free-hand to recruit members to the Board of Directors and Professional Management Teams based on merit, but they also have the good will to run their operations professionally without any interference from the shareholders.

Recognised as the Top Utility in the Central Rift Region, NAWASCO surpassed the utilities in Laikipia, Samburu, Baringo, and Nyandarua Counties. 

In terms of performance in Pro-poor Service Indicator, NAWASSCO was ranked as the Best Performing Utility for the second year in a row. The WSP was recognized for its immense efforts to indiscriminately provide water and sanitation services to low-income areas. 

The Naivasha Water and Sanitation Company (NAIVAWASCO), was ranked as the Best Utility in the Medium Utilities Category. It also emerged as the Most Improved water service provider with a performance score of 101/200 in the 2018/2019 reporting period, compared to 83/200 in the 2017/18 reporting period.

Nakuru Rural Water & Sanitation Co. Ltd (NARUWASCO), posted an impressive performance in the 2018/2019 reporting period by competing with urban water service providers and being ranked at position 42/87 compared to position 67/88 in the 2017/2018 reporting period.

Eng. Ngeno associated the commendable performance of the Nakuru County water service providers to the great leadership from the county executive, a conducive and enabling environment to operate in and the strong donor co-ordinations and great collaboration with the strategic WASH partners in the county.

The Water Services Regulatory Board (WASREB) is a state corporation with the mandate to set standards and enforce regulations that guide the WASH sector in not only ensuring that consumers are protected and have access to efficient, affordable and sustainable services, but also, provide for financial sustainability of water service providers.