• This year’s theme World Water Day 2026 carries the theme “Water and Gender: Where Water Flows, Equality Grows.”

The Cabinet Secretary (CS) for Water, Sanitation and Irrigation, Eric Mugaa, has affirmed that water storage is indispensable for Kenya’s growth.

He frames it as central to national development, linking reliable reserves directly to food security, agriculture, and industrialisation.

Mugaa points to the National Infrastructure Fund (NIF) as the vehicle to finance expansive water storage facilities, elevating them to a national priority.

“Water storage is indispensable for our nation’s growth. It lies at the heart of development—from food security to industrialisation. The National Infrastructure Fund will therefore provide the capital needed to build expansive water storage systems,” he said during a recent interview on national television.

Kenya’s National Infrastructure Fund (NIF) is a newly established financing vehicle designed to mobilize up to KSh5 trillion ($38 billion) over the next decade for large-scale infrastructure projects. It was signed into law by President William Ruto in March 2026 and is intended to reduce reliance on public debt by attracting private capital and investment returns.

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Inclusive Stewardship and Gender Focus

Beyond infrastructure, Mugaa insists that women and children must be actively involved in water‑related decisions because they carry the greatest burden of fetching water.

He stresses that water governance should engage everyone—not just officials or men and urges a bottom‑up, community‑driven approach to stewardship, especially in areas where water access is a daily struggle.

“Decisions about water must involve everyone—including women and children. This participation should extend to conservation, catchment restoration, and all other engagements tied to key decisions on conservation and integrated water management. Women and children must be part and parcel of this process,” Mugaa said.

He adds that the people who ensure hygienic homes are mostly women and girls, and this year’s theme deliberately focuses on those directly impacted by access or lack of water.

Women, he notes, play a central role in farming, especially in kitchen gardens, and the ministry wants to teach them modern irrigation methods to minimize water wastage.

“We will even set up a model farm during International Water Day to showcase what is possible. We want to tell women and girls that they are equal stakeholders in matters of water—something that has been overlooked for far too long,” he said.

World Water Day 2026

This year’s World Water Day carries the theme “Water and Gender: Where Water Flows, Equality Grows.”

Celebrated on Sunday, March 22, the observance highlights how access to safe water and sanitation are both fundamental human rights and critical enablers of gender equality.

The event will be held at Mwerongundu Primary School in Igembe North, led by CS Mugaa.

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