Ruto Treated to Special Gift by Young Girl [PHOTO]

On Saturday, October 26, Deputy President William Ruto was in Nyamira County where he visited families which had been connected to the national electricity grid. 

The DP was gifted a chicken by a young girl after he switched on the lights in the home of Subano Arosi, 77, a widower and farmer in Tente, West Mugirango Constituency.

For the self-professed hustler, the chicken did seem a dear gift since the DP has often opened up about his love for raring hens. 

The DP stated that the Last Mile project would close the gap between rural and urban areas by increasing access to reliable and affordable electricity for households and businesses to stimulate commercial activities.

"We have resolved to electrify rural households and businesses that rely on costly power options; this renewed effort to linking far-flung corners of Kenya to electricity would stimulate commerce, generate jobs, improve health care and have productive educational outcomes," he explained. 

The project has various stages. The first phase was the maximization phase which involved connecting households lying within 600 metres of the earmarked transformers to the national grid.

During this particular phase, low-voltage network and service cables were extended to reach homes and was expected to cover 314,200 households.

The second and third phases involve the installation of new transformers and extending low-voltage cables network to connect more Kenyans.

Under these phases, Kenya Power targets 500,000 households which will in effect add 2.5 million Kenyans to the national grid. 

The first phase of the programme was financed by a loan from the African Development Bank (AfDB).

The second phase is being funded by a loan from the World Bank.

The DP later on attended an empowerment service for Tente SDA Pastoral District Church, Tente, West Mugirango, Nyamira County.