Residents of Nyahera in Kisumu West constituency have hailed a water project in the area provided by Ogra Foundation.
Locals, mainly women, narrated the pain they have undergone to fetch water almost five to 10 kilometers away.
Rosalida Ajwang, 75, thanked the foundation for coming to their aid by providing clean water for drinking and cooking.
Ajwang said she occasionally sleeps without cooking food due to lack of water, noting that it has now been drilled next to her home will enjoy drinking quality water.
Tereza Odhimabo on her part said women have been forced to wake up early to go queue at the water point.
She said their crops have remained unattended leading to poor harvest because most of the time is dedicated to the search of the precious commodity ‘water’.
“Water has remained a problem in this area time immemorial, this water project will herald a new life in this village,” she said.
Speaking at Dago Kokore primary school on Saturday where the water was drilled, Ogra Foundation Director Dr Hezron Makobewa said he was moved by the plight women undergo to collect water in the area.
Makobewa said the water will serve a larger community and cases of water borne diseases will be addressed.
He promised that he will continue drilling water to deserving communities in Kisumu County as a way of uplifting the livelihoods of the locals.
“This will be a continued initiative, the foundation has mapped out areas within Kisumu County that are lacking water and soon we will be drilling bore holes in those areas,” he said.
Thomas Kotieno, an aspiring MCA for Kisumu North thanked Makobewa for the good gesture to the community to get water that has remained elusive to the community for many years.
Kotieno said he will work with the community to identify urgent needs and look for support from non-state actors to come to the aid of the community.