Influence of communication modes on sustainability of water programs in kitui rural sub-county

Modes of communication play vital role in ensuring sustainability of outcome and has become a buzz terminology in the global sustainability discourse. With the growing interest in these modes of communication for sustainable outcomes the researcher has focused his attention on community engagement in relation to water program sustainability. The study adopted a mixed research approach and collected data from participants through random sampling method using questionnaires administered by the help of enumerators and in-depth interview with key informants. A sample size of 100 was applied and data was analyzed and presented using statistical tools and the findings and recommendations documented. The findings demonstrate that out of the three main modes oral mode had a major influence in sustainability of water projects. The result revealed a mean of 2.52 and a large standard deviation of 3.27. This suggested that the responses were quite spread apart. Interpretively, the effectiveness of the oral mode of communication, which featured as the most popular means of communication in the study area, was neither as good nor as bad-with the possibility that the oral mode of communication may have been very effective or not as effective. The study therefore recommends that Implementers of water projects needs to clearly understanding that effective communication with communities is far removed from just passing out information at mass community meetings which brings together women, men, children, educated and the uneducated alike. It involves having the skill set to articulate complex ideas to the various groupings by contextualizing the issues in a simplified and appropriate way, such that the messages being conveyed are adequately understood by all, especially individuals with modest levels of education.