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

African Water Development Report 2006meet their bills. If these are used as the criteriafor ‘adequate provision’, most of Africa’s urbanpopulation would have inadequate provision goingby table 7.2 and figure 7.3.Fig. 7.3: Adequacy Of Water Supply CoverageZimbabw eZambiaand many other water-related diseases whichare significant causes of death. They also bringmany other benefits – including healthier food,higher real incomes and more employment opportunitiesin their maintenance sector for manyTanzaniaKenyaGhanaCOUNTRYGambiaGabonEthiopiaDem. CongoCote d'IvoireCongo RepBeninAngolaUrban Coverage Direct Service Continuous Service % DaySource: Water Supply and Sanitation sector Assessment 2000, WHO African Region, Country Profiles, Africa 2000Indeed, most have levels of provision far belowthis standard. In many urban centres in these regions,no one has this level of provision, becauseeven piped water supplies to the richest householdsare intermittent and of poor quality. Mosturban centres in Africa and Asia have no sewers,and in most of those that do, only a small proportionof the population is connected (Waterand Sanitation in the World’s Cities, 2003).It can be argued that every urban dweller has aright to a standard of water and sanitation provisionthat matches the standards in high-incomenations which, no doubt have the greatest healthbenefits, as they virtually eliminate diarrhoealof the poorest urban households. It is, however,unrealistic to use this as the standard in mostlow-income nations, where limited resourcesand institutional capacities dictates making betterprovision for everyone more important thanmaking very good provision for the minority. Ifthe focus is put on making very good provision,the beneficiaries are likely to be the richer andmore politically powerful groups. If ‘adequate’water is taken to mean a regular piped supplyavailable within the home or in the yard, at leasthalf or more of the urban population of sub-SaharanAfrica has inadequate provision; and if‘adequate’ sanitation is taken to mean an easilymaintained toilet in each person’s home with168