Introduction:
Water scarcity had long defined daily life for residents of Mukaange Village in Masongaleni Ward, Kibwezi East Sub-County, Makueni County. Mukaange Sub-location has an estimated 1,480 residents across eight villages. Recurrent drought, erratic rainfall and the area's arid climate forced many households to walk more than seven kilometres in search of safe drinking water, while others relied on the crocodile-infested Athi River, exposing themselves to significant safety risks. The limited access to safe water affected household health, food production and community’s overall resilience to climate change.
In 2022, the County Government of Makueni drilled the Kiambani Borehole to improve water access for the community. The borehole was drilled to a depth of 160 metres and produced approximately 12.5 m³ of water per hour. Although the borehole produced adequate quantities of groundwater, laboratory tests revealed that the water contained high levels of salinity, making it unsafe for human consumption. Consequently, a significant public investment remained underutilized while the community continued to face acute water insecurity. Through the Participatory Climate Risk Assessment (PCRA) conducted under the Financing Locally Led Climate Action (FLLoCA) Programme, the Mukaange community identified access to safe drinking water as its highest climate adaptation priority and proposed optimizing the existing Kiambani Borehole rather than investing in a new water source. The County Government pursued an innovative solution to transform the saline groundwater into safe drinking water while integrating complementary interventions to strengthen livelihoods, restore ecosystems and enhance long-term climate resilience.
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