Sondu Miriu Project - Essay Example

The aims of modernization are liberty, rationality and progress, modernization can be defined as the process in which a society moves from traditional ways of life to more advanced and modern ways of life, modernization can be viewed as a form of social change.2( Bruno (1995) page 60) According to Wikipedia the free encyclopedia, Modernization theory is also known as the development theory whereby this theory depicts the roles played by the developed countries in order for the developing countries to be modernized and attain sustainable development.

The modernization theory is in contrast with the dependency theory which states that the developed countries will exploit the developing countries and that the developed countries will continue to become richer while the developing will continue to be poorer.3( www.en.wikipedia.org/modernistiontheory) In this paper we will focus on a recent project that has caused social change in a developing country society, the Sondu Miriu project was initiated in 1999 in Kenya following a feasible study undertaken in 1985 this is according to according to the Kengen official website (2007) , the project was is a hydropower producing project and it is located in one of the most rural place in Kenya, since 1999 when work on the project started there has been various changes in the society living in this area, this paper will focus on these changes on a modernization perspective.

4 (http://www.kengen.co.ke/sondu/workprogress.htm)IMPACTS OF THE PROJECT:NEGATIVE:Reallocation:The people living in the proposed location of the project will have to reallocate and this means that they will loose their agricultural land and also homesteads, despite compensation the community will still have to reallocate meaning that this will change their ways of life, the project is already in progress and therefore some people have lost their land and at the same time compensated.Water and soil pollution:Due to construction of the dam there has been water and soil pollution, there has been a loss of clean water but at the same time they have been provided with clean water for domestic use, previously they depended on the sondu Miriu river water for domestic use but now they have been provided with clean piped water for domestic use.

Decline in public safety:The construction of a reservoir dam has brought up a hazard to the local community where there is a risk of people drowning also other hazard are evident from the construction of the dam such as water Bourne diseases bilharzias, elephantiasis, typhoid and cholera, however this problem has been resolved through the construction of a fence all round the dam to safeguard the local community from the hazard and also there has been the establishment of health centers that provide health care to the community.

Forest encroachment:The construction of the dam has restricted access to the Kogutu forest by the local community, however this may be viewed as a positive impact in that now the forest will not face deforestation and therefore preserve the ecosystem of the area, also there has been plans to reforest the area.5 (www.corpwatch.org/article) POSITIVE:Fish farming:Local area