Born in Tukana East, Vivian Amon Esekon had one desire in life; solve the water challenges her people have been through for decades on end.
She was lucy being brought up in Kipkelion, Kericho County where she followed her grandfather who had just landed a job as a night guard in the Catholic-managed farm.
But this never drove out the desire to make water a commodity everyone in her ancestral land could access.
A bright girl Esekon was at St Bernard’s Mission School that she booked a slot at the prestigious Loreto High School. She scored a B+ in her KCSE back in 2008.
This is when she decided to follow her dream and enrolled for a degree in Water and Environmental Engineering at the Egerton University.
Esekon’s streak of luck was not to fade away; she would land a job with the Turkana County government Water ministry in 2015.
Since then, the 30-year-old water engineer has been involved in a lot of projects all geared towards making water accessible to the people.
Lady luck has not left her side either; Esekon won a scholarship for a Master’s degree which she is pursuing at the IHE Institute for Water Education in the Netherlands.
She is studying Hydrology and Water Resources, a course she begun in 2019. Esekonis happy that IHE which is the world’s biggest institute for water studies is helping her shape her dream and Turkana’s legacy.
With no water, those in Turkana have had to depend on wells which Esekon raises question on their quality.
“This has led to abolishing the use of some of the high-yielding wells. Reverse osmosis is being implemented in some of the wells to ensure the water is potable,” she told Nation in an interview while celebrating International Water Day.
Osmosis does not come cheap but is worth every coin spent in the long run, she explains adding “Throughout my studies, I have placed focus on groundwater.”
She appreciates that Netherlands has managed to address water challenges and if she replicates the same in Turkana, it will be a huge success for her.
Turkana is home to some of the country’s massive aquifers that were discovered in 2013 in Lodwar and Loitikipi basins. The two, when fully exploited, could supply water to the whole country for over 70 years, various studies indicate.
Esekon says her focus is finding ways for Turkana residents and the country to benefit from the aquifers. “Throughout my studies, I have placed focus on groundwater,” she says.
“Any search on where one can get the best education on water and the Netherlands pops up. It is said that they have conquered water and walking around allows you to see that,” she says.
When oil was discovered in the county, two massive aquifers in Lodwar and Loitikipi basins were discovered. They are reportedly said to have the capacity of serving the whole country for 70 years.
