The water shortage that has rocked Kenya’s capital city, Nairobi, over years has taken a toll on women and girls.
The problem has rocked the county since 2005 and the shortage has been attributed to factors such as change in weather patterns and aging water facilities.
A report by BBC showed how women and girls in Kibera are paying the price of this shortage. Some of them have been sexually abused while in search of the basic commodity.
In most cases, men are the ones selling water at night and those who decline their sexual advances end up without water.
Mary(not her real name), faced such a traumatizing encounter whereby she was attacked and sexually abused by vendors when she had gone to fetch water at night.
“The men, they were two, had already ripped my clothes so before the women who heard me screaming came, they had already done it, ” she said.
Mary spends around Kshs1800 for water monthly, which is almost half of the salary she earns.
Not everybody manages to raise the Kshs1800 monthly for water. Another woman revealed that she had to pay for water with her body.
“I used to take water on credit until it reached a point the vendor asked me how will you pay all that money. I told him due to the corona pandemic I have nothing. He told me that as things stand, I will pay him using my body,” she said.
Victims of such incidents however end up not reporting them because they fear stigma thus making it difficult for the police to prosecute perpetrators.
“The challenge is police don’t investigate generalities or suspicions, police investigate specific cases reported on a known matter,” police spokesperson Bruno Shioso noted.
The government has provided public water points however it is not enough to meet the people’s needs. Vendors came in a bid to address the shortage, and also make a living out of it.
Umande Trust in Kibera offers women who have undergone the traumatizing experience psychological counseling.
“These sessions come in to help alleviate some of the mental issues that victims have had to carry with them for a very long time” Benazir Omotto, a member of the Trust said.
Activists have come up with campaigns to end the sex for water and have been convincing tank owners to hire more women.Â
“I feel good when I come here and find it is a lady selling water to me. Before I would find young men hanging around here and smoking weed,” another woman said.
NGOs are also working hard to prevent unscrupulous vendors from exploiting their customers by taking a bill to the parliament.
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