Here's panacea to Africa's perennial water stress

Learners scramble for water at the Future Accelerated Education Programme Centre in Kalobeyei Refugee Camp in Turkana county.  [File, Standard]

Touring Zanzibar is many a person’s wish, considering its scenic beaches, luxurious hotels and blend of vibrant cultures. Behind the scenes however, residents of the island paradise desire rescue from perennial water stress, amid plenty, challenges that threaten their wellbeing and future as a tourist destination.

The latest “State of Africa’s Report” brings out water security issue in relatable ways. Qualifying Zanzibar as one of the driest regions in the world, and relying on more information from Zanzibar Water Authority, the report by the Centre for Science and Environment brings out its inability to supply even half of the daily needed 200 million litres freshwater.

This inadvertently burdens women and girls, who walk long distances in search of the commodity, at the expense of education and health, including reproductive health services.
But why Zanzibar, an Indian Ocean archipelago? Blame its vulnerability on effects of climate change, including rising temperatures and erratic weather patterns that have led to depletion of groundwater sources and increased salinity.

Insufficient waste management has also encouraged discharge of untreated waste into the ocean, contaminating the water and raising concerns on safety of the seafood consumed locally. Besides, inadequate infrastructure and poor waste management, despite a 2022 comprehensive water investment plan whose fruit should be visible by 2027, have been cited.

That means cholera and other waterborne diseases linger. Drinking water is scarce despite efforts by organisations such as CDC and UNICEF to improve water quality through bulk chlorination and monitoring.

Yet Zanzibar is not alone in this. During the launch of the “State of Africa’s Environment” in Nairobi last week, speaker after speaker brought out the dire, yet correctable water security situation in the continent. An Environment expert, Dr Francis Oremo, showed how amid plenty, 45 of Africa’s 54 nations still qualify as water-stressed, due to poor governance.

In Kenyan upmarket areas, for instance, noisy bowsers at high-rise apartments are a nuisance. The rate at which hand-carts, wheelbarrows and motorbikes crisscross estates and homes to deliver water whose sources are questionable, is alarming.

At funerals, bowsers are an unavoidable feature. Images of women and children walking long distances for water in ASAL regions are common. Where I schooled, we would carry water to school for drinking and spraying on floors to ward off jiggers. This is still a norm. Yet Africa is home to thousands of water sources, quantified as 17 major rivers, over 160 lakes, vast wetlands and groundwater sources.

An estimated 80 per cent of Zanzibar’s water ends up as wastewater. Internet sources show less than 1 per cent of this is treated. More recycling and proper treatment of the wastewater can change the situation and lift pressure off the island’s dwindling freshwater resources.

Other issues such as fast growing population, environmental degradation, uneven distribution of water sources, pressure from the rain-fed agriculture and manufacturing sectors may worsen Africa’s water stress. But with better water governance and policies that boost equitable access, and tackle infrastructure deficits, poor governance, and the impacts of climate change, achieving Sustainable Development Goal 6 - Universal access to water and sanitation by 2030, can be a reality.

The State of Africa’s Environment report recommends the same, other than investment in infrastructure and sustainable management of natural resources, alongside capacity building on the benefits of proper water use and hygiene practices.

It is not all doom. Africa has adequate water. Governments must now prioritise proper governance, aside from the other interventions.

-The writer advocates for climate justice. [e-mail]