What is the availability of clean drinking water in Eastern Africa?

By Ekaterina Kilima – Art in Tanzania internship

Environmental Advocacy Program

The shortage of freshwater resources is considered a global problem that affects many parts of the world, including Eastern African countries. It is often wrongly believed that because the majority of the Earth’s surface is covered with water, clean drinking water for humans is abundant. In reality, only 3% of the global water is considered freshwater suitable for drinking (WWF). Therefore, there is a high need for a well-balanced management of the available water resources.

One of the main issues related to high water demand in Eastern Africa is the ongoing population growth and urbanization, which, in fact, increases living standards and requires more water per capita. For example, the urban population in Tanzania increased by 7.2 million people between 2005 and 2015, but the water sector bodies failed to respond adequately to these changes (GIZ 2018). It may sound like a paradox that, while the Eastern African states hold the most significant amount of on-ground water reservoirs on the continent, with Lake Victoria being the second largest freshwater lake in the world, at least half of the population is vulnerable to the water scarcity problem. Nonetheless, several socio-economic and socio-political causes enhance the problem of drinking water availability.

One of these causes is an increasing water demand in agriculture, which receives water for irrigation from the nearby freshwater resources such as rivers and lakes. Some freshwater from the wetlands is being lost because of inefficient irrigation methods. Due to the increasing population, the conflict between citizens’ water needs and farming’s needs will become more explicit. Moreover, surface water reserves often get polluted because of the closely located industrial activities, for example oil extraction or transportation. Water contamination can also happen due to nutrient and wastewater transportation from urban and rural areas closely connected to poor sanitation practices. After getting polluted, this water cannot be used in households without multi-stage water filters.

One of the most complex causes of freshwater scarcity in Eastern Africa is the transboundary ownership of water sources and their weak management. Most countries in Eastern Africa must share water resources, which often leads to uneven distribution of freshwater (IJWRD 2016). Therefore, the problem is not in the lack of water reservoirs but in the unfair distribution and poor management. The inaccuracy of the water management involves inadequate implementation of the environmental law, corruption of interests among authorities, and lack of problem-specific knowledge and funds.

There is no universal list of solutions that would help all the countries in Eastern Africa. The perfect mix of solutions for each country would depend on criteria such as population, climate, level of corruption, economic and political stability, and others. However, some suggestions are critical for each country. First, it is essential to support local farmers in their transition to more efficient irrigation practices, which would allow more water to be available for drinking and household needs. Second, governments should increase global awareness of the positive changes in the region to attract more foreign investments. Governments should work closely with international organizations and NGOs to develop more sustainable projects to provide equitable access to clean drinking water. Third, it is critical to legally protect African wetlands from human-led contamination and avoid ecosystem disturbance.