New alliance seeks to strengthen Kenya’s sanitation sector
Kenya’s sanitation and hygiene sector could benefit from stronger collaboration between financial institutions, development organisations and water-sector partners as efforts shift towards addressing the systemic challenges that continue to affect service delivery.
The emerging partnership brings together World Waternet, the Sanitation and Hygiene Fund (SHF) and KCB Bank Group, with discussions focusing on how strategic partnerships can help address barriers to financing sanitation and hygiene beyond conventional funding approaches.
The engagement seeks to explore solutions that can support long-term sector sustainability rather than concentrating solely on individual projects. The approach recognises that improving sanitation and hygiene requires sustained investment, strong institutions and coordinated action among stakeholders.
World Waternet Country Director Kenya Peter de Koning said the discussions at KCB Bank Group provided an opportunity to develop strategic partnerships aimed at addressing some of the broader challenges affecting sanitation financing.
The collaboration with SHF is expected to broaden discussions around financing and developing sustainable solutions for sanitation and hygiene. Rather than treating financing as the only challenge, the partners are looking at wider structural issues that can determine whether sanitation services can be sustained over time.
Sanitation remains a critical component of public health and environmental protection. Access to safe sanitation and proper hygiene services can help reduce exposure to disease, protect water resources and improve living conditions in communities. However, maintaining these services requires continuous investment and effective systems that extend beyond the implementation of individual projects.
The emerging alliance therefore places emphasis on creating conditions that can support lasting improvements across the sector. By bringing financial institutions and sector organisations together, the partners aim to explore ways of mobilising resources and developing solutions that can respond to the broader needs of sanitation and hygiene services.
The discussions also point to the growing importance of partnerships in addressing water, sanitation and hygiene challenges. Government agencies, financial institutions, development organisations and service providers each have different roles to play, from policy and regulation to financing, infrastructure development and service delivery.
World Waternet said the collaboration is intended to contribute to systemic change and strengthen the sustainability of the sanitation sector.
The engagement involved teams from World Waternet and KCB, with Peter de Koning highlighting the contribution of colleagues including Michelle Otieno and George Sanga, alongside KCB representatives Fred Kioko and David Githega.
Other organisations associated with the broader water and sanitation network include the Nairobi water utility, Water Resources Authority, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Kenya, WaterWorX, Blue Deal and Embu Water and Sanitation Company.
The development comes as stakeholders continue to explore new approaches to financing and strengthening water, sanitation and hygiene services in Kenya. The emphasis on sector-wide solutions could help shift attention from short-term interventions towards systems capable of sustaining sanitation services over the long term.
For sanitation and hygiene services to deliver lasting benefits, financing needs to be accompanied by effective planning, institutional coordination and sustainable service models. The emerging partnership provides an opportunity for stakeholders to bring these elements together and explore practical approaches to strengthening the sector.
The collaboration signals a growing recognition that solving Kenya’s sanitation and hygiene challenges will require broader alliances capable of combining financial expertise, sector knowledge and long-term development approaches.
