State Deparment for Water and Sanitation hosts Sanitation Hygiene Fund Officials 18th February, 2026, Nairobi The Director Sanitation Management and Donor Coordination Eng. Mary Wamaitha today hosted the Sanitation and Hygiene Fund and its partners for the support and collaboration over the past few years.
SHF is working with the Government to accelerate access to safely managed sanitation through Next Generation Sanitation.
With over 80% of the population in the country not connected to a sewer system, this approach focusing on catalyzing funding to support non-sewered sanitation solutions presents a unique opportunity.
A key part of this approach is SANEMAT, the first dedicated Sanitation Economy Market Maturity Framework developed by SHF and being piloted in Kenya to identify bottlenecks, and and inform decision-making, reforms and investments in the sector.
SENAMAT is a tool designed to assess and strengthen the maturity of sanitation markets in low- and middle-income countries .
It identifies bottlenecks to inform investment and policy, focusing on transitioning from basic service provision to a sustainable, thriving sanitation economy that includes safely managed, non-sewered, and circular economy solutions.
The partnership with development partners is very important to the government of Kenya is structured around collaboration and real demand, rather than purely program delivery.
Eng. Wamaitha stated that the SHF approach has meaningfully influenced how the Ministry thinks about Sanitation and Hygiene for current programs for the future direction of the sector.
Market-Based Sanitation Approach recognizes clearly that National Sanitation targets are achieved through public investment and helps transition sanitation from a publicly resourced service into an investable service economy.
In unlocking Private Capital Potential through SHF, the Ministry has begun advancing this approach, bearing early progress in greater internal confidence and understanding on engagement with private capital and developing investment case for potential financiers and better coordination between Ministries and regulators.
Other initiatives under deliberations included : The Sanitation Market Maturity Assessment Tool (SANEMAT), Public Sector Delegation (PSD) and Building Code Reform (BCR).
“We feel the journey has truly begun, but the system is now starting to move. Sustained support will not simply fund sanitation, but will make sanitation sustainable”, stated Eng. Wamaitha.
