Rehabilitated Arera Borehole eases water shortages in Garissa

ERICK KYALO-KNA

The National Drought Management Authority (NDMA), in partnership with the County Government of Garissa, has commissioned the rehabilitated Arera Borehole in Shanta Abaq Sub-County, significantly improving access to safe, reliable and sustainable water for local communities and their livestock.

The project was implemented in response to growing pressure on the existing Arera water source, which had left residents vulnerable to recurrent water shortages, livestock losses and declining livelihoods during prolonged dry spells.

Completed at a cost of Sh1.7 million, the rehabilitated borehole is expected to strengthen pastoral livelihoods by providing a reliable water supply for households and livestock while easing pressure on nearby water sources that often become overstretched during periods of drought.

Speaking during the commissioning, NDMA Chief Executive Officer Hared Adan said the project is part of the government’s long-term strategy to strengthen drought resilience through investment in durable water infrastructure that reduces vulnerability and lessens dependence on costly emergency response measures.

"During the recent drought, we received repeated appeals from the community to rehabilitate this borehole after livestock were forced to drink from hand-dug troughs, resulting in significant water losses and inefficient use of an already scarce resource,” Adan said.

He explained that NDMA mobilised resources to rehabilitate the borehole and improve water storage and livestock watering systems to ensure a more efficient and sustainable supply of water.

The intervention included construction of a fabricated steel water tower, installation of two elevated 10,000-litre water storage tanks, increasing total storage capacity to 20,000 litres, construction of four livestock watering troughs, and installation of pipelines and associated fittings.

The upgraded system replaces previously used handdug watering points, significantly improving water efficiency, reducing wastage and enhancing livestock access to clean water.

Adan noted that investing in resilient water infrastructure is central to reducing the human and economic impacts of drought in arid and semi-arid regions.

“Our focus is to reduce the cost of responding to drought by investing in long-term solutions that strengthen community resilience before crises occur. Every resilience investment protects livelihoods, safeguards development gains and reduces future expenditure on emergency response,” he said.