Bruderhilfe accesses the necessity for clean water usage and sanitation, by determining the Water poverty level of the communities we work with; that is if they have access to water, how affordable is the available water, and the quality of the water available in these communities.
The Ajegunle-Ikorodu community, an informal settlement under the Kosofe Local Government area of Lagos State, is one of the main communities where we carry out development projects. Though a densely populated area with over 18,000 residents, the community is beset with water and sanitation problems arising from a lack of a proper urban planning framework.
There is no source of potable water in Ajegunle-Ikorodu, as the waterworks have not been able to channel portable water into the community. A few residents have constructed private boreholes and wells in their compounds, where others come to buy privately treated water; but many of the residents get water from the limited public boreholes in the community, which do not have purification systems.
The community also has poor sanitation, characterised by open drainage systems with overflowing gutters and drainage channels, and no embankment for the community to accommodate stormwater. The community experiences serious flooding every year, which even led to the relocation of the community secondary school. There is also no public toilet in the community, and open defecation is sometimes practised.
Communities in the Dutsi and Kusada Local Government areas of Katsina State where Bruderhilfe has also implemented empowerment interventions lack access to adequate water. Residents rely on few water bodies like ponds and streams which do not contain very clean water, for drinking, cooking and sanitary; while a few also purchase water from sparsely available private boreholes.
Residents of these communities do not have access to sanitation facilities, even at the household level, as they are rural. The communities have no drainage system and this results in poor sanitation. The households also use make-shift bathrooms and no proper toilets, and open defecation is the most common practice in these communities.
Water and Sanitation is an issue in the communities we work with because it leads to increased household expenditure, resulting from dependency on purchased water by many of these residents who are low income earners. It also affects the ability of the community to keep up with sanitation and healthy living practices, and they become prone to water-borne diseases and other epidemics.