Kenya is seeking greater private investment and blended financing to expand water and sanitation services as mounting public debt and budget constraints limit governments’ ability to fund essential infrastructure.
Government officials, investors and development partners at the Innovate for Water and Sanitation (I4WASH) Marketplace Forum 2026 in Nairobi said the sector needs to develop commercially viable projects capable of attracting long-term private capital.
PwC, Partner for Public Sector and International Development, Alex Nyaga says across Africa, more than 400 million people lack access to basic safe water, while the sector requires an estimated $30 billion to $50 billion annually against current funding of about $19 billion.
“A lot of governments are having a lot of fiscal deficit, and therefore they are not able to attract or to spend more money in certain sectors,” says Nyaga.
Laikipia Governor Joshua Irungu, who chairs the Council of Governors’ Water and Natural Resources Management Committee, said counties could no longer rely on public budgets alone to meet growing infrastructure needs.
Irungu is urging county governments to develop credible, investment-ready projects and explore blended finance and public-private partnerships while safeguarding the public interest.
However, Nyaga said many water and sanitation projects were not designed to meet private investors’ requirements, limiting their ability to attract funding.
He says projects must be financially de-risked and properly prepared before being taken to market.
Revenue sustainability is another challenge. PwC, Partner for Deals and Infrastructure Advisory, Isaac Otolo says water providers needed tariffs that supported investment and maintenance while accounting for consumers’ ability and willingness to pay.
Otolo says bulk water infrastructure typically operates over 15 to 20 years, requiring patient equity or debt financing that can generate returns over an extended period.
Jelmer van Veen, first secretary at the Netherlands Embassy in Kenya, questioned the sustainability of projects funded without clear operation and maintenance arrangements, warning that infrastructure could become unusable if upkeep was neglected.
Kenya Water Institute, Chairperson, Patrick Musili says investment must also strengthen skills, research and institutional capacity.
“Innovation without investment remains an idea, while investment transforms ideas into solutions,” says Musili, adding that infrastructure alone could not sustain reliable water services.
Irungu said the sector’s success should ultimately be measured by whether safe water was available when needed, services remained affordable and interruptions were minimised, rather than by the amount of money allocated to projects.