IMPACTS OF ENERGY SOURCES IN GROUNDWATER PUMPING ON SUSTAINABILITY OF RURAL WATER SUPPLY SCHEMES IN THE ARID AND SEMI-ARID LANDS OF KENYA: A case study of Kajiado County, Kenya
Leshinka Lemamai Nkarinka
, Mose Mwangi , Elizabeth Odhiambo
affordable, sustainable, adoption, project, investment
This study has been carried out to establish the relationship between the type of energy source and the sustainability of rural water schemes in Kenya's ASALs. Sustainability across different energy sources is tested by comparing operational costs, unit water costs, and pumping patterns for petrol, diesel, grid power, solar power, and hybrid sources. Data were collected between 1st July 2025 and 3rd March 2026, involving interviews with a total of 150 respondents who are beneficiaries of 30 borehole projects and 10 key informants. Data analysis was conducted using descriptive statistics, graphs, a one-tailed t-test, and Pearson correlation to examine the relationships among energy source type, monthly operational cost, unit water cost, and water pumping patterns. The study found that while solar-powered borehole projects were the most sustainable in terms of operational costs, their pumping patterns did not allow for the maximum utilization of water resources. Diesel and petrol generators have the highest operational costs (Ksh 45,235.13 and Ksh 51,452.18, respectively) associated with water pumping, but provide between-pumping hours to allow maximum utilization of water resources. Hybrid systems offer the combined advantage of reduced operational costs and increased pumping hours, but they are very expensive to install because they require the installation of at least two types of energy sources. The duration of operational cost decreases as the duration of pumping increases for an energy source, while the unit cost of water is directly proportional to operational cost. Additionally, operational cost showed a positive correlation with the unit cost of water, and a significant negative correlation existed with pumping hours. Consequently, this study recommends that water resource developers enhance rural residents' capacity in energy access and management by incorporating financial models into decision-making and empower borehole owners to make informed choices that facilitate the adoption of dependable, affordable, and cost-effective groundwater pumping methods.
"IMPACTS OF ENERGY SOURCES IN GROUNDWATER PUMPING ON SUSTAINABILITY OF RURAL WATER SUPPLY SCHEMES IN THE ARID AND SEMI-ARID LANDS OF KENYA: A case study of Kajiado County, Kenya", JETNR - JOURNAL OF EMERGING TRENDS AND NOVEL RESEARCH (www.JETNR.org), ISSN:2984-9276, Vol.4, Issue 6, page no.b615-b621, June-2026, Available :https://rjpn.org/JETNR/papers/JETNR2606189.pdf
Volume 4
Issue 6,
June-2026
Pages : b615-b621
Paper Reg. ID: JETNR_235202
Published Paper Id: JETNR2606189
Downloads: 00096
Research Area: Other area not in list
Country: Kajiado, Rift Valley , Kenya
ISSN: 2984-9276 | IMPACT FACTOR: 9.87 Calculated By Google Scholar | ESTD YEAR: 2023
An International Scholarly Open Access Journal, Peer-Reviewed, Refereed Journal Impact Factor 9.87 Calculate by Google Scholar and Semantic Scholar | AI-Powered Research Tool, Multidisciplinary, Monthly, Multilanguage Journal Indexing in All Major Database & Metadata, Citation Generator
Publisher: RJPN (IJPublication) Janvi Wave
