Safe water as a human right : an evidence in West Africa ?

In 2010, the United Nations General Assembly officially recognized the human right to water and sanitation as a fundamental human right. What seems to be good news hides, actually, a sad back coin : if this has to be recognized, it means that in a lot of countries, there is still a lot to do in order to make this human right an evidence. Let's take a look at how Western Africa is dealing with its safe water access.

(School girls collecting water in Niger) (charitywater.org)

Where does the water ressources come from ?

Same as a lot of countries, Africa relies on rainfalls and groundwater resources. If we take a look at the first map, we can see that Western Africa seems to be quite lucky with the rainfalls, especially for the countries near the sea such as Nigeria, Ghana, or Ivory Coast. But if we slide to the second map, we notice that Western Africa is also the warmest part of the continent. This means that the main question is going to be the following : as 70 to 90% of rainfalls evaporate, how can we keep the maximum of it ?

(maps 1 and 2) (earthwise.bgs.ac.uk)

It is also important to note that these rainfalls are subject to seasonality : the ITCZ (Intertropical Convergence Zone)(see map 3), responsible for the rainfalls, moves South during winter time, and leaves Western Africa with 0-2 days of rainfall a month. The same question is to be answered : how can we keep the water during winter ?

(map 3 : the ITCZ is the red line)(nature.com)

Africa has, surprisingly, very big groundwater resources (according to OECD). In our case, there is three types of groundwater : superficial groundwater, which is filled during the rain season, old pedestal groundwater and deep groundwater, located in the sedimentary basin. The amount of safe water stored in these deep groundwater is huge and could cover all of today's and future needs. But the main issue is that they're stored very deep in the ground, sometimes around 1000 to 2000 meters and are unsustainable. And in some countries, such as Niger or Mali, located in the Sahara desert, the soil composition prevents any forage. In any case, Western Africa needs investments to get this groundwater.

How is the water collected/kept and why isn't it safe ?

The method of water collection is the main reason why the water isn't safe. For a majority of West-African people, reservoir storage, water abstraction, and then filtration are used, or they even get to drink bottled water coming from other countries. But for the people that don't benefit of these methods, the collection, often precarious, is responsible of its dirtiness.

To be short, the rainfall is collected through rooftops harvesting, sand dams, hand dug wells or spring boxes and gravity flows. These methods are very useful to keep the rainfall, but don't sadly, guarantee a clean water. Other methods implicate stream collection, which isn't safe either.

How many people are concerned ?

This question is a tricky one. I tried to find the most accurate information for this article but every article I was reading was giving me different numbers. For the IUCN, 40% of the population in Western Africa don't have an access to safe water; for the UNICEF, it's 50%; for the Sahel and West Africa Club Secretariat, it's only down to 30%. No need to go on : clearly, the numbers differ because not everyone is considering the same definition of "clean waters". It depends if we're talking about cities or countryside (the lack can go up to 80% in rural areas), it also depends on if the water is available at any time of the day / week, or on how much water one can carry back to its home (there can then be a lack even if a clean water supply is available).

(map 4 : SWAC point of view)

The number variation may also depends on the point of view : businesses have financial reasons to show evolving numbers, and countries as well because as the percentage of people without an access to safe water decreases, the development of the country increases. But others, such as international newspapers or NGOs might have a more objective point of view, and more accurate numbers.

The consequences of a lack of water :

Sicknesses

A lack of access to safe water can cause water-related diseases, such as cholera, malaria, Guinea worm, or diarrhea. In 2005, 14 303 cases of cholera were diagnosed in the area. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that Sub-Saharan Africa holds the highest rate of diarrhea cases, with 1.29 cases per person annually. In contrast, in the United States, the rate is 0.07 cases per person per year. These kind of sicknesses are bad for the people, but also for the development of countries.

Country development

The absence of clean water leads to a loss of revenues and thus, the impossibility to generate and sustain families, due in large part to the effects of water-related diseases.

In addition, the energy and time used in carrying water from long distances, a job mainly done by women and girls, keep them away from proper jobs and most importantly, schools.

In both cases, the absence of clean water is something to see from two sides : yes, the people are affected by this lack, but as I just said, the related issues are something that may affect the whole country general development. Having people stuck in poverty because of a water issue means less working forces for the country, and thus less income. 

(shutterstock.com)

It seems to clearly be in the interest of the governments to act : they could enjoy the consequences, and moreover, it is a human right. But are they really acting ? Let's sort this out in the next post !