Case Study of a Kenyan Slum – Quality of water they use

As mentioned when introducing the thematic area, rapid urbanisation has resulted in the majority of urban the residents in Sub-Saharan Africa having to reside in slums which are characterised by a lack of basic services such as water and sewage. Drawing on a paper by Wambui Kimani- Murage and Ngindu (2007) I will be exploring the quality of the water that the population residing in the Kenyan slum of Langas in the Eldoret municipality use and the effect that over crowding has on the quality of water.

The proportion of the urban population of Kenya nearly doubled from 16% in 1980 to 31% in 1998 and this rapid urbanisation has resulted in an increased proportion of the population living in slum or shanty towns, in absolute poverty in much of the urban areas (World Bank, 1999/2000). As slums have an illegal status as they are mostly informal settlements they therefore do not receive government services such as water or drainage and sewage systems which has a detrimental affect on the health of the population residing there. For example, in Kenya the diarrheal diseases are among the major illnesses affecting the slum residents. The study highlights the fact that some affordable on site sanitation and underground water is used, but due to the high concentration of people, it does not allow for adequate distance between wells using the underground water and the pit latrines which are the used onsite sanitation. This is a major issue facing a high proportion of the population as the insufficient distance allows for microorganisms to migrate from the faecal matter in the pits to the water source, causing pollution of the drinking water.

The overriding conclusion from this study is that most of the sources of domestic water within the slum are contaminated with faecal matter and the main issue was the closeness of the pit latrine and the wells. Therefore, this indicates the importance of distance between the sanitation facility and the water source, as in order to prevent or lower contamination, they should be a sufficient distance apart. Consequently, this is another issue to take into consideration when trying to determine the cause of illnesses and diseases in urban areas. Also similar to that of the study by Tumwine et al (2002), this paper acknowledged the importance of education and behaviour change in terms of sanitation in reducing water-borne diseases.

Diarrhoea prevalence in East Africa

As mentioned in the previous post ill health and diseases associated with inadequate water supply and sanitation facilities is a momentous concern in Africa and in the rest of the developing world. These illnesses and diseases include that of diarrhoea, which is a fundamental environmental health issue. Drawing from Tumwine et al (2002) I will be exploring the links concerning the prevalence of diarrhoea and the nature of water supplies and sanitation facilities in three countries in East Africa; Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.

The literature argues that the type of water source or the nature of the water supplies available to the population in that area affects the prevalence of diarrhoea.

 

 

 

(Tumwine et al 2002)

 

The Graph above displays the household prevalence of diarrhoea by type of water source and as illustrated, the water source resulting in the least prevalence is that of a vendor or kiosk. The water source with the highest prevalence is that of reservoirs or ponds meaning that households that rely on surface water as their primary source of water are more likely to suffer from diarrhoea and it is reported that in these circumstances, there was at least one case of diarrhoea in the preceding week after the survey was collected.

 

The form of water source isn’t the only factor that can affect the prevalence of illnesses such as diarrhoea as the type of sanitation facility is also related with diarrhoea morbidity. The results from this study indicate that un-piped households with no sanitation had a prevalence rate of 66%, whereas those with an access to a pit or a ventilated improved privy (VIP) latrine had a much lower prevalence rate of about 20%.

 

Therefore this study exemplifies the importance of the type of water source and the available sanitation facilities in the area, on the prevalence of diarrhoea. Using surface water seems to be the biggest determining factor in causing the illness and this has also been found in other studies such as Manun’ebo et al (1994) whose findings were consistent with those from Tumwine et al (2002).

The situation of access to clean water and sanitation in Africa is extremely challenging. Urban areas are facing a host of challenges due to their rapid growth in recent years (The Water Project). The accelerated growth of urbanisation and therefore the monumental increase in people residing in cities has amplified the demand for accessible water and sanitation services. In much of the literature surrounding this topic it has been argued that the provision of basic services such as access to clean water and sanitation has not kept pace with this urban growth and therefore this has caused problems for those living in the urban areas. One of the main amenities that has been unable to keep pace with the rate of urbanisation, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa is that of the development of wastewater management systems. This has led to the pollution of sources of natural water, which those residing in area, rely on, causing adverse effects in terms of health. Drinking the polluted water can lead to water-related, diarrhoeal diseases, which is a problem not only in Africa but all over the world with 1 billion cases of water-related, diarrhoeal diseases each year, involving 3 to 4 million deaths in which most are children each year (WHO 2000).  Clearly this is an issue which needs to be addressed and over the next few weeks I hope to explore the different strategies and systems that are being developed to comeback the pollution of these water bodies in Africa.

Urbanisation is the process by which the number of people residing in towns and cities increases compared to the number living in rural areas. The process is rapidly growing in both the developed and developing world. The proportion of the World’s urban population is expected to increase about 57% by 2050 from 47% in 2000. More than 90% of projected population growth will be accounted for by the large cities in the developing countries.

In the developing world, the continent of Africa has experienced the highest urban growth during the last two decades at 3.5% per year and this rate is projected to continue to 2050. Projections also indicate that between 2010 and 2025 some African cities will account for up to 85% of the population. For example the city of Lagos which is the capital of Nigeria has surpassed Cairo in size, with a population estimated at around 21million and has been described as the centre of one of the largest urban areas in the world. The rate at which this city has grown is stupendous with a population of 1.4million in 1970.

Urbanisation is one of the world’s most critical issues. In Africa, it is raising significant challenges for the delivery of basic services such as water and sanitation, which I will be trying to investigate through the development of my blog.