The president has directed the county governments to do all within their powers to ensure the ravaging drought is contained.
The president spoke during a meeting with a team from both the national and the county governments on how to respond to drought that has affected 23 arid and semiarid counties.
Nearly half of the country is grappling with the heavy effects of lack of enough water, with the president directing the county governments to review their budget priorities and channel resources towards the thousands of people and livestock whose lives are on the line.
This drought has been described as on of the worst, with rainfall falling significantly short last season, too little to have any impact on the now driest seasons in a long time.
Ndakaini Dam, which supplies water to the capital, is also experiencing a major decrease in water levels, with only 42 per cent of the water available.
Some of the rivers too feeding the dam have almost dried, with most of them reduced to only trickles.
Water reservoirs across the country are recording new lows, with the controversy surrounded Murang’a water tunnel one of the projects that might solve water storage and shortage in future.
Water Cabinet Secretary Eugene Wamalwa has said that the project is almost complete, and it offers hope for a better water plan in the future.
“The project is 20 per cent done, and we expect it to be complete by 2018, so that we recharge Ndakaini, when the rains come, we are expecting them in April, these rivers that have dropped in levels will swell,” said Wamalwa.
The government seems to have been caught unprepared, but it has set aside Sh20 billion to offer food and water to the most affected population.