The Government of Kenya, through the Water Resources Authority (WRA), has invited the public to participate in shaping the Draft Water Allocation Guidelines and Allocation Thresholds 2025.
In a notice released on Thursday December 18, WRA stated that the aim was to gather input on a system designed to ensure equitable and sustainable water use nationwide.
The public participation process was to be conducted in accordance with Kenya’s constitutional principles, which emphasise transparency, inclusion, and citizen involvement in decisions affecting natural resources.
WRA scheduled a series of stakeholder forums to be held between February 9 and 13, 2026, covering the Rift Valley, Ewaso Ng’iro, Lake Victoria, Tana, Athi and Nairobi regions.
The authority stated that written comments were also accepted via email or at the WRA offices in Nairobi within 30 days of the publication of this notice.
The proposed guidelines introduced updated thresholds for water use permits. They were intended to replace the previous system that relied on historical precedence of first-come, first-served basis.
Under the old system, large commercial users often had priority over ordinary households and the environment. Decisions on water permits were often based on who applied first or who had more influence, resulting in limited water resources for communities and rivers during dry seasons.
The WRA highlighted that the new thresholds would prioritise basic human needs and environmental protection. Every household, school, and hospital was guaranteed water, and rivers and wetlands were safeguarded to maintain ecological health.
The guidelines categorised water users into four groups: Category A for essential social and domestic use, and Categories B, C, and D for increasing levels of economic and commercial use.
The new system requires large users to maintain sufficient storage for dry-season demand. Rainwater harvesting was also made mandatory for new institutional and commercial buildings. Flood water was primarily reserved for storage rather than direct abstraction.
Enforcement was tightened, with penalties introduced for over-abstraction and digital permitting systems deployed to monitor water use in real time, replacing the previously lax oversight framework.
The WRA called on stakeholders, including communities, industries, and environmental groups, to provide input. Officials emphasised that public feedback was critical in ensuring that water allocation became fairer and more sustainable.
