Quench my thirst. Part 1

Subsaharan  Africa, has been plagued by water scarcity for decades on end. The problem is presently not alarming because water demands are still being met although sparsely. A time may come however, that the amount of water required for domestic use, industrial purposes and agriculture may far exceed supply. Due to increasing industrialization and urbanization in Africa, water needs have increased tremendously over the years but the facilities to improve the water supply have not been remarkably improved. Poor governance, improper allocation of scarce resources, a poor maintenance culture, vis a vis a poor research and development culture,  contamination of available water sources  and corruption are the little foxes destroying the vine. It is sad to note that about 1.1 billion people in the world still have little or no access to safe drinking water. In the African continent and in the world at large,Subsaharan Africa is still the most affected. The ongoing battle for access to safe drinking water shows how important water is in sustaining the ongoing economic development in the African sub continent.  Statistics show that a person in the US consumes 100 to 175 gallons of water per day in his home,however an average African family uses only about  5 gallons of water per day [Wikipedia].  The consequences of this disparity are enormous and far reaching. It takes a heavy toll on women and children, most importantly the under 5 child.  Its effect on women is tremendous this is due to the gender associated roles ascribed to women in the traditional African setting. Women are the managers at home and they are in charge of water for cooking, washing, bathing and the likes. Apart from this they ensure that the house is clean and that the whole household is well catered for. They therefore have to trek miles per day in search of water to accomplish their unending tasks at home. Its been found that the average rural African woman treks about 6 kilometers per day in search of clean water. Thereby, preventing her fom being able to seek gainful employment.  Consequently, Sub-Saharan Africa is said to lose 40 billion potential work hours per year collecting water ( Wikipedia) The impact on the children too can not be over emphasized, with the water scarcity affecting their health (by increasing the under 5 mortality death toll from water borne diseases),and their education ( by increasing the time spent looking for water instead of being in school). Of the sexes,the girl child is the most affected due also to the fact that she needs to help her mother with household chores and getting water to accomplish this. Some girls are therefore, not able to attend school for this reason and even when they attend concentration is impaired as they are too tired to learn or are busy thinking of how to get water later. Absentism from school may tend to occur more regularly during draughts.  Food availability may be reduced due to the far reaching effects of water scarcity on agricultural practices. It reduces the amount of water available for farm land  irrigation and feeding cattle. Thereby reducing farm land productivity.  Regional conflict over water boundaries, land boundaries and dams occur from time to time. It has been projected that after 2022 water may be used as a weapon of war and terrorism in Africa and especially in northern Africa. (Federal intelligence agencies) Lack of fore sight by our governments as also led to poor development. UNEP projected that by 2025 about 25 African nations are likely to suffer from water stress. Urbanization without increase in the quantity and quality of infrastructure  serving the populace is also a major bane. In this day and age statistics show that a large proportion of the inhabitants of Subsaharan Africa still die from water borne diseases, such as; Cholera, dysentery, schistosomiasis, loa loa, typhoid fever, malaria and diarrhea, amongst others.  Given all these it can be seen that water scarcity may stall economic growth, development and productivity in the affected regions.