WATER TREATMENT 16_vital new 260mm x 90mm.pdf
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25-Apr-16
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Water Treatment
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By Lubwa Leonard ater in Africa is a scarce resource and clean drinking water even more so. According to the World Health Organization fact sheet, contaminated water causes over half a million diarrhea deaths every year and 38% of health facilities in low and middle-income countries lack any water source. Africa bears the biggest burden as far as accessing clean water is concerned. Although access to clean water and sanitation in Sub-Saharan Africa has steadily improved over the past two decades, the region measures far below other developing regions. Access to piped water in Africa remains the preserve of the few and treated water which is vital for the preservation of life is a key component for development. This is according to a poll carried out by this publication. Out of over 700 readers polled a third felt that water is the most essential ingredient for Africa’s development a figure matched only by the need for energy.
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Increased demand Africa has witnessed high influx of people into urban centres and subsequent mushrooming of informal settlements. With this, come the challenge of waste disposal and accessibility to clean water. Due to the rapid urbanization of African cities, the existing infrastructures are highly stressed and pushing the authorities to go for high capacity water treatment plants and undertake large scale expansions in shortest possible time and finding the right and adequate funding is a big challenge. Urban authorities should in times of rapid expansion focus on getting the right and cost effective technologies that are sustainable into the future. Surprisingly due to limited financing, several urban authorities in Africa tend to show unwillingness to invest in water treatment hence there is a low priority placement in regards to water treatment in many urban centres in Africa. This problem is compounded by lack of proper understanding of the importance of waste water management by the relevant stakeholders in many African countries. 22
September 2016