Kahindi takes over Coast Water Agency as political questions swirl

NAIROBI, Kenya—Former Kilifi County Assembly Speaker Jimmy Kahindi has been appointed the Coast Water Works Development Agency (CWWDA) Chairperson, taking charge of the regional water agency at a time when the Coast continues to grapple with persistent shortages and mounting pressure for better water infrastructure.

Water, Sanitation and Irrigation Cabinet Secretary Eric Murithi Mugaa appointed Kahindi for a three-year term beginning September 11, 2026, revoking the appointment of outgoing Chairperson Daniel Katama Mwaringa.

The change places a seasoned Kilifi political operator at the helm of an agency whose mandate stretches across Mombasa, Kilifi, Kwale, Taita-Taveta, Lamu and Tana River counties.

Kahindi is a former Speaker of the Kilifi County Assembly, a position he held for about ten years. He has also remained active in national and county politics and has previously been associated with the United Democratic Alliance (UDA), where he has served in the party’s election machinery.

His appointment comes against the backdrop of intense political realignments in Kilifi ahead of the 2027 General Election.

In December 2025, UDA Secretary General Hassan Omar publicly identified Kahindi as a possible candidate to take over the party’s Kilifi gubernatorial campaign following Aisha Jumwa’s departure from UDA. Kahindi had also played a prominent role in President William Ruto’s 2022 campaign in Kilifi.

Jumwa has since moved to Wiper and was unveiled by party leader Kalonzo Musyoka as the party’s candidate for the Kilifi governor’s seat, adding another layer to the political contest surrounding the county.

The appointment has therefore already attracted political speculation in Coast circles, particularly because Mwaringa had been at the centre of the region’s water politics during his tenure.

However, claims linking Mwaringa directly to Jumwa as a political ally could not be independently established. What is clear is that the two featured prominently in the public debate over Kilifi’s water crisis in 2025, when severe shortages sparked political exchanges between local leaders and the national government.

Mwaringa’s departure also comes before the expiry of the three-year term he received in April 2024. He had initially been appointed to the CWWDA chairmanship in February 2023 before receiving a fresh three-year appointment in April 2024.

His tenure coincided with efforts to advance major water infrastructure projects while the agency faced persistent challenges in delivering adequate bulk water supplies to the Coast.

Kahindi now inherits an agency facing one of the region’s oldest and most politically sensitive problems: access to reliable water.

The Coast has for years experienced a mismatch between demand and available supply, particularly in Mombasa and parts of Kilifi and Kwale. Previous estimates placed the investment required to comprehensively address the region’s water deficit at hundreds of billions of shillings.

Crisis far from being resolved.

In August 2026, four Coast water companies were reported to have accumulated about Sh5.5 billion in unpaid bulk water bills, resulting in disconnections that further aggravated shortages across the region.

The agency has also been pursuing major infrastructure projects intended to increase supply, including the Mwache multipurpose project, Mzima II and other water distribution and production initiatives.

Kahindi’s appointment therefore comes with an immediate test beyond the politics surrounding his arrival: whether the new board leadership can accelerate projects, improve coordination with county water companies and help narrow the gap between the Coast’s growing population and its available water supply.

For residents who have endured years of dry taps, however, the political debate surrounding the new chairman is likely to matter less than whether water actually reaches their homes.

The new CWWDA leadership will consequently be judged not only by its political neutrality but by its ability to deliver tangible progress on a problem that has outlived successive administrations and leadership changes.