Status of water governance in Kenya from a public health perspective

Access to drinking water, sanitation and hygiene are recognized as one of the most successful public health interventions in the prevention of communicable diseases. As a result, access to safe drinking water and sanitation is part of the strategic development goals 6(SDG6). Over the years, there has been a global improvement in the access to safe drinking water and sanitation with recent findings showing that since 1990, 2.6 billion have been able to access improved water sources and 1.9 billion have gained improved sanitation. This study sought out to explore the drinking water governance in Kenya with an objective of getting a map of the water sector and how it has been aligned with global goals, strategies, and recommendations. In order to answer the research question; mapping, document and policy analyses were employed with data analysis being framed around the Health Policy analysis triangle (Walt and Gilson, 1994) and the OECD concept of water Governance. The findings from the study show that Kenya is a water scarce country with 667m3 per capita of TRWR and has a coverage of 58% and 28% in drinking water and sanitation services coverage respectively. Moreover, the country is also among the leading in deaths associated with diarrheal diseases, being ranked as 5th globally. Consequently, the country has embarked on a series of reforms in the water sector with a view of achieving universal access to drinking water and sanitation in line with GoK constitution 2010, the country's development agenda 'Vision 2030 'as well as the global Agenda 2030 SDG6. The new reform agenda in the water sector is a positive outlook for Kenya but for these efforts to fully bear fruits the water system needs to be strengthened further with a perspective of ensuring it responds to TAP Key Words: Sustainable Development Goal, Drinking water,Health Policy Analysis,Water Governance,Diarrheal Diseases