Abstract:
The National Water Master Plan 2030 (NWMP), Kenya’s water resources development and management blue print provides estimates of the country’s water resources and its planning for the period 2010–2030. The water demands were estimated for the year 2010 and projected for the years 2030 and 2050. The projection for 2030 was intended to formulate the NWMP while the projection for 2050 was intended to assess future vulnerability of water resources considering the effects of climate change. However, the plan is constrained by challenges latent in its preparation and assumptions made on key issues, among them, the promulgation of the Constitution of Kenya 2010 which impacted the country’s water sector in a very critical manner. This study evaluated the merits and weaknesses of the plan. An analysis of the NWMP was made considering the process, content and implementation. The findings suggest that NWMP was developed using inadequate data, projections for key sectors of the economy have large uncertainties, and that the management arrangements stipulated in the new constitution were not entirely taken into account. It was concluded that these weaknesses undermine its feasibility as an operational document. A review of the plan to address the identified gaps was recommended.