By Benadeta Mwaura - Reporter
Kenya, 13 November 2025 - In Homa Bay’s Suba South, residents once walked over 5 km daily in search of water, facing wild animals and the eerie folklore of “night runners.”
But a new borehole at Kopere Seka is changing lives, bringing clean water, hope, and new economic opportunities to the community.
Kopere Seka is in Gwasi South and few months ago, the villagers used to wake up in the wee hours mostly not to go to school or work, but to the water point, sometimes more than five kilometres away.
For Siprosa Adoyo Opere,56, and others in Lwala sub-location, those pre-dawn treks were part of life.
“Imagine waking at 3am to start the journey,” Siprosa says.
“A few minutes late and you miss a jerrycan. Sometimes you come back and the well is dry.”
The danger of fetching water was real: long distances exposed women and children to hyenas and other wildlife, and to a local fear known as “night runners”, mysterious nocturnal figures woven into Luo folklore and recently documented in reporting and documentary work as a deeply held local belief, BBC Africa Eye reported.
For years, Homa Bay’s water picture looked grim on paper too. National data show piped water coverage in Homa Bay is low, well below the national average, and many households rely on open sources or distant boreholes.
The sector regulator’s performance report shows wide county gaps in access, and development plans for Homa Bay have long flagged the need for rural boreholes and solar-powered pumps.
That is changing, slowly. The national government, through Kenya Red Cross Society, have drilled and equipped multiple boreholes in the last two years, with projects such as the Homa Bay Water Supply Improvement and several solar-powered rural boreholes rolled out under county initiatives. Local postings and county materials show active commissioning of ward-level boreholes and partnerships with private actors on specific pump projects.
Locally the new Kopere Seka borehole has been a turning point. Residents say the well has reduced the time and risk of water collection, freed women from endless treks, and opened space for kitchen gardens and small enterprises.
“Now we can breathe again,” Siprosa says.
“We have water for our homes, our animals, and even our kitchen gardens. Life has changed.”
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The practical benefits are clear. With water on-site, families can diversify from pure subsistence farming into small-scale horticulture, increase food security, and reduce water-borne disease risks.
For the county, boreholes are a low-cost but high-impact intervention that fits into Homa Bay’s broader resilience and climate-adaptation plans.
Homa Bay has also been part of national and international resilience programmes, including disaster-risk workshops and water projects tied to Lake Victoria catchment improvements.
But challenges remain. Homa Bay Water and Sewerage Company (HOMAWASCO), the county water company, coverage is limited, only a small share of the county population receives piped water, and rainfall is erratic.
Without adequate storage tanks and maintenance budgets, new boreholes are vulnerable during dry spells.
The county investment booklet and planning documents explicitly commit to solar-powered boreholes in every ward,
Experts say the recipe for success is simple but demanding: pair drilling with community trainings on water-catchment, provide secure pumps and spare-part budgets, and build local governance for equitable water use.
The national water strategy aims to raise water coverage nationwide, and projects in Homa Bay, like Rodi-Kopany and linked treatment works, show what can be achieved when investment meets planning.
For Gwasi South, the message is hope tested by history: water is life, but it is also fragile.
Residents want guarantees, for pump servicing, for storage tanks to catch the brief rains, and for a durable link between water services and livelihood programs such as kitchen gardens and small livestock support.
“We are not asking for much,” Siprosa says.
“Just that the water keeps flowing so our children can go to school without carrying jerrycans, and so we can farm without fear.”
