“There is no doubt that the market has spoken in a big way.
This leaves no doubt in the capacity of our economy to finance well-structured viable ventures”
… Esther Koimett, Investment Secretary, as quoted in today’s DN on KenGen’s IPO.
I am not such an expert on private investment like Bankelele and his commentators, who are btw doing a great job in reporting stories from the monetary world in Kenya. What triggered my attention on the KenGen IPO, though, was that Kenyans apparently come out in great masses when it comes to investing money in (hopefully) profitable markets.
I was also going through an interesting advertisment (published in April 11th edition of the DN) on the launch of the Kisumu Water and Sanitation Project which is partly funded by the French Government through AFD – an investment to the tune of 20 million Euro.
Now, bearing in mind that people are willing to spend their savings on shares – an investment that promises a healthy divident in future, what if we take this kind of investment spirit onto different levels? So far, it seems, ppl are willing to invest their money into anything profitable – so why does the Governemnt have to look for funding if Kenyans actually do have the money needed to …repair Kisumu’s water supply and sanitation services?
All four speeches on the launch of the above mentioned project agreement held by the Minister of Water and Irrigation, his P.S., the chairman of Kisumu Water and Sewerage Company Ltd. and the Mayor of Kisumu contained a phrase in which they encouraged all involved parties to “embrace good corporate governance” or even a straight-forward challenge to the Water Services Board & – Provider “to live up to the expectations”. And, according to the P.S., “the support has attracted the Global Partnership on Output Based Aid (GPOBA) funding which if used properly should solve the problem of water and sanitation in low income areas”.
It is great to see this kind of progress since the implementation of the Water Act 2000, and a Ministry that is actively encouraging the people to greater achievements.
And as much as these new funding approaches (like GPOBA, Infraco or Guarantco) are interesting, what I would like to ask instead is: Are ppl ready to accept a completely different approach on the way we see water and sanitary needs under a financial context? What (for instance) if we can find ways to succesfully implement even more EcoSan projects in Kenya where human excreta and waste water become nutrients that could then be sold for agricultural use (~fertilizers)?
Or in other words: our waste => money.
The technology is already available, the understading for closing environmental loops is currently being thaught to future generations and the monetary incentive is given. So, what do you think? Would it be possible to attract ppl in investing their money into such unorthodox businesses that do not only fill the pocket but also help closing some much needed environmental loops?
