Contending the scourge of water shortage in Nigeria and beyond

Globally, over 2 billion people live in water-stressed nations with limited access to water and basic sanitation services. Of this number, over 40 percent live in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).

However, the United Nations clearly certifies the human right to water and sanitation, noting everyone has the right to sufficient, continuous, safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable water for personal and domestic use. Meanwhile, the African world view also attests to the indispensability of water as it relates to day-to-day existence. Therefore, improved water supply and sanitation are important for public health.

In SSA, more than a quarter of the population spends over half an hour per trip to collect water. Also, inadequate access to safe toilets causes people to defecate in the open, exposing food and water sources to human waste. Reports show that a quarter of those defeacating openly worldwide, live in SSA, Nigeria in particular.

Also, in places where water supply is not readily available, people often ignore the practice of regular hand washing, which can further increase the risk of infectious diseases

In an article on water and hygiene by Chimezie Anyakora and Ofure Odibeli, various factors contribute to the water crisis in Africa. However, the major drivers include population growth and rural-urban migration, poverty, natural disasters, and increased pollution. The increasing demand for water in Africa poses a significant burden on the limited water resources. SSA has the highest prevalence of urban slums in the world, which are breeding grounds for infectious diseases.

Poverty is also a major barrier to access to water and sanitation, and SSA is the poorest and least developed region in the world. Deep and widespread poverty across Africa limits the effectiveness and sustainability of public health interventions to improve water and sanitation services.

Even where the best water coverage exists, 1 in 4 people still lack adequate sanitation. The challenges of water shortages and poor sanitation are particularly dire in rural communities, where funding for establishing good water and sanitary facilities is also inadequate. Often, external and domestic funding is mainly spent in urban areas while rural communities lag behind. This poor access to water and sanitation has tremendous negative consequences on the public health of the African populace.

Water shortages, contaminated water and poor sanitation are interrelated and linked to the spread of diseases such as cholera, diarrhoea, dysentery, and typhoid. 73 percent of the diarrhoeal and enteric disease burden in Africa is linked to poor access to adequate water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), with the greater proportion occurring in poorer children. Reports show that 115 people in Africa die every hour from diseases linked to poor water and sanitary conditions.

Also, in places where water supply is not readily available, people often ignore the practice of regular hand washing, which can further increase the risk of infectious diseases.

Facing probably the highest preventable health risk are patients and healthcare workers who are at risk of infection and disease in health facilities where there are inadequate WASH services.

Read also: Water shortages and poor hygiene: A breeding ground for infectious diseases in Africa

Also, globally, 15 percent of patients develop an infection during a hospital stay, with the proportion being much greater in low-income countries.

Addressing the water and sanitation crisis in Africa is crucial to building healthy societies. To achieve this, there is a need for regional and national collaboration between governments, private sector organisations, non-governmental organisations and other stakeholders in the public health sector. For sustainable implementation of public health interventions, the following strategies must be adopted:

Increased investments to finance public health interventions: A recent report stated that achieving universal safe drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene in SSA will cost $35 billion per annum. Efforts to achieve sustainable transformation are therefore expensive and require a pooled investment from various stakeholders. Investment efforts should also concentrate more on rural communities with the most pressing needs.

Adoption of smart technologies for water management: The African Union High Level Panel on Innovation and Emerging Technologies (APET) urges African countries to leverage on smart technologies to address their WASH challenges. Smart water management systems can incorporate sensors, monitors, geographic information systems (GIS), satellite mapping, and other data sharing tools, which can help to monitor water quality, water quantity, efficient irrigation, leak detection, floods, droughts, etc.

Strengthening water and sanitation services in healthcare facilities, particularly in rural communities: This will increase access to safe and quality healthcare in rural areas which is crucial to implementing primary health care and reduce the risk of hospital-acquired infectious diseases both for patients and health workers.

Establishment of community-based and publicly supported programmes that promote behavioural change and education is crucial to improving public adoption of safe and hygienic practices.

Given the dire consequences of water shortages and poor hygiene on public health, African governments must rise to the challenge of addressing poor water and sanitary conditions as a crucial pathway to achieving universal health coverage. Ultimately, for these objectives to be achieved, much will depend on the political will and vision of the various status quo forces across the African continent.