Thwake Multipurpose Dam’s First Phase Set for December Commissioning

MAKUENI—The first phase of the Thwake Multipurpose Dam is slated for official commissioning in December 2024, announced Water and Sanitation Principal Secretary Julius Korir. During a site inspection and appraisal tour, Korir expressed satisfaction with the current progress of the dam’s construction, which is now 92 percent complete. President Dr. William Ruto is expected to commission the multi-billion water reservoir at the year’s end.

According to Kenya News Agency, the Ministry had committed to completing the dam’s Embankment section by May, and they are ahead of schedule, with completion expected in the coming days. The dam’s critical paths, including the embankment, are nearly finished, allowing soon for the settling process and subsequent work on the bridge and electromechanical areas.

During the same tour, Water Secretary Eng. Samwel Alima, who also serves as the Project Engineer, affirmed the government’s commitment to the timely completion of the dam, which is a flagship project under Kenya’s Vision 2030 and the Bottom Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA). Makueni County Commissioner Henry Wafula urged the contractor to accelerate the work to meet the scheduled completion.

The Government of Kenya, with funding from the African Development Bank (AfDB), is implementing the Thwake Multipurpose Water Development Program Phase 1. This program aims to regulate flows on River Athi downstream for flood control and drought mitigation. The first phase includes constructing an 80.5-meter high dam with a storage capacity of 688 million cubic meters, covering an area of 9,217 acres.

Future phases will focus on developing a hydropower generating system, water supply, sanitation, and wastewater infrastructure, and an irrigation scheme to support approximately 1.3 million people and irrigate 40,000 hectares in the Lower Eastern region of the country.