An Assessment Of The Factors Affecting Service Delivery Among Water Companies In Kenya: A Case Of Gusii Water And Sanitation Company, Kisii Town

Abstract

Water is an essential commodity, however in Kenya water provision is faced by a number of challenges such as low level of water coverage, high non-revenue water often averaging between 40 and 60 percent, as well as lack of financial sustainability due to a combination of low tariffs, poor consumer records and inefficient billing and collection practices. Therefore, the purpose of this study will be to assess the factors affecting service delivery among water companies in Kenya. In order to achieve this, the study will utilize the following specific objectives; examine the effect of water infrastructure on service delivery, evaluate the effect of sustainability of water supply on service delivery, establish the effect of water quality on service delivery by GWASCO and determine the influence of staff performance on service delivery by GWASCO. The study will adopt a case study research design. The target population will be 380 households from Milimani, Mwembe, Jogoo and 38 employees of GWASCO. Stratified random sampling will be used to pick a sample of 195 households connected to GWASCO water and 38 employees of GWASCO, where all the employees will be used. Data will be collected from primary and secondary sources. Secondary sources will comprise of records from GWASCO, Ministry of Water and Irrigation and publications, while primary data will be gathered by using closed and open questionnaires. Analysis will be undertaken using descriptive statistics which involve frequencies from which percentages will be derived. The analyzed data will be summarized and findings will be reported as a description of the total population of the study. Data will be presented in form of pie charts, frequency tables and in percentages. Qualitative data will be organized into similar themes and presented in the form of a narrative report. When concluded, the study will be useful to the government and water companies in terms of enabling them to make policy documents on water. At the same time, researchers will find this as an important source of information for their research.