African Water Development Report 2006 - United Nations Economic ...

areas are distinct from those of rural areas, andthat urban areas have particular advantages overrural settlements. Even so, what constitutes ‘adequate’or ‘improved’ access to water can be appliedto all urban and rural areas.For instance, some Governments classify everyonewith a water source within 200 metresof their home as having adequate provision ofwater, but having a public tap within 200 metresof your home in a rural settlement with 200 personsper tap is not the same as having a publictap within 200 metres of your home in an urbanYet in the scenario of the urban slums, it will bedifficult to reconcile definitions of ‘adequate’ waterand sanitation provision from a health perspective,while it would be easier to meet internationaltargets for improving water and sanitationprovision if the definition of ‘improved provision’were to be set low. In a sense, 100 per cent ofurban (and rural) dwellers already have access towater and sanitation. No one can live withoutwater. No city develops where there is no water.Virtually all livelihoods (and the economic activitiesthat underpin them) also depend on water,directly or indirectly. The issue is not whetherthey have water and sanitation provision, butwhether they have adequate provision (Waterand Sanitation in the World’s Cities, 2003).WATER AND URBAN ENVIRONMENTSTable 7.2: Adequacy of Urban Water Supply in some Selected Capital CitiesUrban Coverage Direct Service Continuous Service % DayAngola 34 80 33.3Benin 74 60 100Congo Rep 71 72.5 100Cote d’Ivoire 90 5.9 100Dem. Congo 89 80 13Ethiopia 77 60 33.3Gabon 73 46 100Gambia 80 90 100Ghana87 31 83Kenya87 41 75Tanzania 80 12.4 58Zambia 88 52 33.3Zimbabwe 100 89 100Source: Water Supply and Sanitation sector Assessment 2000, WHO African Region, Country Profiles, Africa2000squatter settlement with 5000 persons per tap.Water in such cramped settlements are vulnerableto faecal contamination even without sewersor other means to remove household and humanwaste. Many urban households have so littlespace per person that they lack sufficient spaceto fit toilets. But urban settlements also providemore opportunities for high quality provision ofwater and sanitation, because unit costs are generallylower and urban dwellers often have morecapacity to pay.Assessment of water and sanitation provisionhas to be based on some implicit understandingor explicit definition of ‘adequate’. In urban areasin high-income countries, ‘adequate’ water isconsidered as water that can be safely consumed,piped into each home, distributed by internalplumbing to toilets, bathrooms and kitchens,and available 24 hours a day. ‘Adequate sanitationmeans at least one water-flushed toilet ineach house or apartment, a wash basin in the toiletor close by where hands can be washed, withfacilities for personal hygiene – hot water and abath or shower. And, of course, there must be anincome level that allows all this to be paid for, orprovisions to ensure supplies for those unable to167