Who will farm the land?

A less obvious link between water and food development 

The reason for this post, and its temporary divergence from food development, is to demonstrate the huge problems within Africa with safe water provision and sanitation. The significance of this issue in relation to food is based on the overwhelming percentages of the population working in the agricultural sector. According to World Bank statistics, 53% of workers in Sub-Saharan Africa fell under this category. Of note were countries like Burundi, where the figure stood at 86% in the same year, and Somalia with 80% (data.worldbank.org, 2021). The simple explanation for this recognition is that water plays a far greater part in food provision than solely irrigation practices in the lives of farmers. The safety of water and sanitation services also impacts the health of large parts of the national workforce, in a sector that, if disrupted, can have national ramifications. It is no wonder that the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development has identified the necessity for improved facilities as a threat not just on a national scale, but potentially as a threat to the world economy (OECD, 2017).

According to the UN Sustainable Development Goals’ online resources, in 2020 26% of people globally lacked access to safely managed drinking water, and 46% lacked safely managed sanitation. Whilst not forgetting the varied levels of development across the continent, these problems seem to be concentrated in central and West Africa, with the top 13 countries with the lowest percentage of people using at least basic sanitation services (as a % of the population) all being found in Africa (data.worldbank.org, 2021b). So what are the issues at hand?

Figure One: Risks of Pit Lattrines 
(Ravenscroft et al., 2017)

Uganda Case Study 

 Starting in Kampala, Uganda, 90% of households use on-site facilities, mostly in the form of pit-latrines (Nakari et al. 2016 cited in Nayebare et al., 2019), many of which lack concrete slabs. The problem here, is that pit latrines are often found in close proximity to wells and boreholes for drinking water extraction (Ravenscroft et al., 2017), and a frequently unlined, meaning pathogens including protozoa, viruses and bacteria are able to leach into the very same groundwater, endangering human health (WHO, 2011; cited in, Martínez-Santos et al., 2017). Faecal contaminated groundwater water supplies usually result in widespread gastrointestinal disease (Martínez-Santos et al., 2017).

More cause for Concern?

Further alarm surrounding these issues has been raised in recent years. Multiple organisations, namely the WHO, UN and the European Food and Safety Authority have acknowledged the growing concern over incidences of antimicrobial resistance (AMB), to medical treatments (Beukes, King and Schmidt, 2017).

One study on a peri-urban community in KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa succinctly summarises the dimensions of the problem. The study assessed the prevalence of AMR E-Coli and multidrug-resistant Tuberculosis (AMR-TB) in samples collected from pit latrines. 21-40% of the South African population is thought to rely on pit latrines (Graham and Polizzotto, 2013, Cited in Beukes, King and Schmidt, 2017).

Typical Pit Latrine in Kampala
(Secretariat, 2009)


This problem has produced an evolving threat to health that castes current approaches into contingency. Its emergence is, unfortunately, an exacerbation of other epidemics, such as the HIV crisis in the South African region. With 11 million bacterial infections in South Africa per year (OECD, 2017) antibiotics are continually prescribed, and antimicrobial resistance is consequentially on the rise.

A further aggravating factor surrounding the lack of development of sanitary facilities is the tendency for low-income settlements to be found in low-lying areas, which are prone to flooding, risking widespread contamination (WSP, 2015). These floods have been attributed to four main causes. The first is thought to be due to local factors, where population increases have resulted in an increase in occupancy upon floodplains, which are naturally prone to flooding (Douglas et al., 2008). The others relating exclusively to urban areas include increased runoff from impermeable surfaces, inadequate drainage, and flooding from small streams flowing through settlements (Douglas et al., 2008).

Whilst this rather negative post relates more to the waterside of the blog series, its centrality in the lives of millions means it would be flippant to ignore.

Next Week: Rivers 

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