El Niño preparedness in Budalangi as banks built along River Nzoia

With various government agencies scaling up warnings about the effects of the looming El Niño, thousands of residents have begun preparing for the rains.

In Budalangi, Busia County, some farmers have started tilling their land, a stark contrast to the usual anxiety that heavy rains bring to families in the region.

Farmers are now beginning to realise the positive impact of the dykes constructed along the River Nzoia, which have helped rehabilitate previously flood-prone farmlands.

The waters of River Nzoia are rising, slowly but steadily, as they meander through Budalangi before spilling into Lake Victoria. For Kevin Okumu, the rains are a blessing.

Three years ago, these fields lay completely submerged beneath the floodwaters. Today, they are green with promise, ripe and ready for planting.

Kevin is not alone; his sons have joined him on the farm, turning soil once feared to be lost to the river.

Here, the announcement of the rains is no longer met with dread. It is a welcome call, the sound of new beginnings, and the promise of a harvest.

“Vile walisema elnino inakuja na hapa ni sandy soil meaning maji haikai kwa muda sasa nikaweka mahindi na mharagwe, hapo nyuma niewai weka njugu, sweet potato pia lakini saa hii nimeweka mahindi na maharagwe,” Okumu noted.

For decades, the lowlands of Budalangi have lived in fear. Whenever the River Nzoia burst its banks, the unforgiving waters of Lake Victoria surged into villages, swallowing homes, destroying livelihoods and, at times, claiming lives. But in 2025, a new chapter began.

The government launched the construction of secondary dykes, an ambitious effort to tame the waters and shield communities from the river’s fury.

Today, the landscape is slowly changing. Where floodwaters once left behind devastation, residents are reclaiming their farms, breathing life back into soils that had long been buried beneath the waters.

For the people of Budalangi, restoring these fertile lands is all they dream of. A return of a land they once thought they had lost.

“Mwaka 2008 kulikuwa na dry season hakukua na mafuriko nakwambia hapa ni malorry ilikuwa inakuja kutoka uganda kutoka kitale wanafikiria ndio kuna chakula watu walikuwa wanakuja hapa kubeba chakula kumaanisha hapa ukicontrol tunaweza kuwa na chakula nyingi inaweza lisha ata taifa,” said Godfrey Wanjala a Maumau resident.  
The El Niño warning, however, cuts both ways.

For 81-year-old Josephine Ouma, the forecast of more rain carries little promise and plenty of fear.

In 2020, Lake Victoria’s backflow surged into Bukala village, swallowing homes and tens of acres of farmland.

Josephine lost everything she had built: a home, her land, and the security they provided. Now widowed and having buried all her children, she faces the prospect of another flood with a fear that runs deeper than the rising waters

“Walisema ati wilmino ata jana tulikuwa tunazingumza tunasema hii mvua hii imenyesha siku moja hii nyumba inafanya namna hii kama wilmino imefika sisi tutatenda wapi juu maji inatoka mpaka kitale inakuja hapa inatubeba,” said Josephine Ouma a Bukala resident.

Josephine is among 213 families still living in makeshift camps scattered across homesteads offered by well-wishers.

For these families, displacement has become a painful way of life, years after the floods swept away their homes and livelihoods.

But they have also seen what is possible. In neighbouring villages, the newly constructed dykes have held back the waters, offering communities a measure of protection and hope.

Now, they are asking for the same shield. The construction of dykes to protect their homes and farms, alongside the desilting of streams to improve the flow of floodwaters.

But with the El Niño alert raising fears of another deluge, time is no longer on their side. They need action, and they need it now.

“Hizo mito ziko yala swamp zinafaa zifunguliwe maana kuna nyingi zimekaa karibu miaka 40 hazijawai funguliwa na ndio maana maji ikikuja na haipai njia inafika kwa maboma ya watu,” Godfrey added.

For now, River Nzoia majestically moves along its course, held in place by the completed stretch of dykes.

While Kevin tills the reclaimed earth, sowing seeds of hope, Josephine clutches her pearls, anxiously watching the skies.

In Budalangi, residents know both faces of the rains. The waters that bring life and the floods that can destroy homes and livelihoods.

Even so, they remain optimistic that help will arrive before the skies fully unleash their fury.