KENYA: Water straight from the well and paid for by mobile phone

Record ID: 361430

  • Title: KENYA: Water straight from the well and paid for by mobile phone
  • Date: 24th November 2009
  • Summary: YATTA, KENYA (OCTOBER 12, 2009) (REUTERS) PEOPLE PUSHING THEIR BICYCLES PAST WATER PUMP WOMEN FETCHING WATER
  • Embargoed: 9th December 2009 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Kenya
  • Country: Kenya
  • Topics: Science / Technology,Energy
  • Reuters ID: LVA7WR2II3GO2W8JJAOP23OG1VZS
  • Story Text: The 15,000 residents of Kalakuni in eastern Kenya now have access to water from a well, powered by sloar panels, in a village in one of the country's most arid areas.
    The e-water project, sponsored by Kenya's Red Cross, Danish pump maker GRUNDFOS Lifelink and communications company Safaricom, has revolutionised the lives of locals, who can finally access water after years of suffering.
    "We have been having drought for 5 years now and we have been fetching water from a river about 2 hours away but with this project here, we are benefiting," said Patricia Muthige, a resident.
    The 33,000 U.S. dollar project employs the use of electronic tags -- purchased for 1.5 U.S. dollars each -- to draw water.
    The tag has a built-in micro-chip which identifies the user through a pin number, and records how many litres of water they have bought.
    Users pay the bill using a mobile phone money transfer system called M-pesa.
    "I just pay my bill here. All I do is top up my bill through Mpesa and water comes out. It costs almost nothing," said Jane Mwende, another local resident.
    Users can only purchase the e-water using e-money. Kenya's communication giant Safaricom, with nearly million subscribers, carries out and monitors all transactions through each individual chip.
    The project operates entirely on solar power, where panels convert sunlight into electricity, which is used to pump water into a 10,000 litter water tank.
    "The sustainability in the water projects is the key for us. We provide a water system which is supposed to provide water for many years to come and by using the solar energy it's definitely one of technologies, which allows communities to fetch water in the future," said Lars Laursen, General Manager of GRUNDFOS Lifelink.
    Water problems are prevalent in Kenya where it is estimated that about 16 million of the population have no or little access to clean water and a continuing drought is now in its fifth consecutive year.
    The system is being tested across Kenya, and by the end of the year at least 20 communities will be combining mobile banking and solar powered wells.
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