NAIROBI, Kenya, Jan 29 — The Government of Kenya, in partnership with the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and the Mandera County Government, has stepped up efforts to advance the Daua River Basin Development Initiative, a transformative cross-border project linking Kenya, Ethiopia, and Somalia.
The renewed push was discussed during a high-level ministerial briefing held Thursday at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) in Nairobi and chaired by Prime Cabinet Secretary and Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs Musalia Mudavadi.
The meeting brought together Mandera County leaders led by Governor Mohamed Adan Khalif, senior national government officials, development partners, and the IGAD Secretariat, represented by its Head of Mission to Kenya, Fatuma Adan.
In a statement, IGAD described the engagement as a step toward “powering peace and prosperity through shared cross-border investment.”
“The Daua River Basin sustains over three million people across the drought-prone tri-border region,” the regional bloc said.
At the centre of the discussions was the proposed Daua River Dam, envisioned as Kenya’s second-largest dam with a projected capacity of 2 billion cubic metres.
Once completed, the dam could irrigate up to 1.2 million acres of farmland across the arid and semi-arid Mandera Triangle, significantly boosting food security, livelihoods, and climate resilience.
“The Daua River Basin is more than a lifeline; it is the backbone of survival for over three million people across the drought-prone Mandera Triangle linking Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia,” Mudavadi said.
He noted that the 160-kilometre riverine ecosystem, covering about 9,000 square kilometres, holds immense untapped potential for irrigation, livestock production, and regional development.
Mudavadi said he plans to engage Ethiopian government officials on the sidelines of an upcoming African Union meeting in Addis Ababa to align efforts and fast-track the dam’s construction under the broader Daua River Basin Initiative.
Governor Khalif underscored the strategic importance of the project for Mandera County and the wider borderlands, describing it as a catalyst for cross-border trade, regional connectivity, and economic integration.
He stressed the urgent need for border-area electrification, expanded irrigation, domestic water supply, and hydropower generation to cushion communities against recurring drought.
The meeting also served as a platform to engage IGAD’s technical and diplomatic mission on cross-border infrastructure, water, irrigation, energy, and trade facilitation.
The engagement comes ahead of the planned February 2026 signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) and the Ethiopia Customs Commission, aimed at easing trade along the Kenya–Ethiopia corridor.
Officials noted that the World Bank-funded Horn of Africa Gateway Development Project, being implemented by KeNHA and KRA, is already improving the movement of people and goods, strengthening digital connectivity, and opening up the Isiolo–Mandera Corridor, thereby deepening economic links with Ethiopia and Somalia.
Also in attendance were PS State Department for Irrigation Ephantus Kimotho, Mandera Deputy Governor Dr. Ali Maalim, NEDI Coordinator Mohamed Guleid, senior officials from Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC), county executives, and representatives of development partners.
The Daua River Basin Development Initiative is expected to play a pivotal role in fostering peace, shared prosperity, and sustainable development across one of the Horn of Africa’s most climate-vulnerable regions.
