Challenges of public water supply in umuahia (abia state)
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Cover Page – – – – – – – – – –
Title Page – – – – – – – – – –
Certification – – – – – – – – – –
Dedication – – – – – – – – – –
Acknowledgement – – – – – – – – –
Abstract – – – – – – – – – –
Table of Content – – – – – – – – –
Chapter One: Introduction
Background of the Study – – – – – –
Statement of the Problem – – – – – –
Objectives of the Study – – – – – – –
Research Questions – – – – – – –
Research Hypotheses – – – – – – –
Significance of the Study – – – – – – –
Scope/ Limitation of the Study – – – – – –
Definition of Terms – – – – – – –
Chapter Two: Review of Related Literature
2.1 Introduction – – – – – – – – –
2.2 Conceptual Framework – – – – – – –
2.3 Theoretical Framework – – – – – – –
2.4 Empirical Review – – – – – – – –
Chapter Three: Research Methodology
3.1 Introduction – – – – – – – –
3.1 Research Design – – – – – – – –
3.3 Area of the Study – – – – – – – –
3.4 Population of the Study – – – – – – –
3.5 Sample Size and Sampling Techniques – – – –
3.6 Instrumentation – – – – – – – –
3.7 Validation of the Instrument – – – – – –
3.8 Administration of the Instrument – – – – –
3.9 Method of Data Analysis – – – – – – –
Chapter Four: Presentation, Analysis and Interpretation of Data
4.1 Introduction – – – – – – – – –
4.2 Presentation and Analysis of Data – – – – –
4.3 Testing of Hypotheses – – – – – – –
4.4 Discussion of Findings – – – – – – –
Chapter Five: Summary, Conclusion and Recommendations
5.1 Introduction – – – – – – – – –
5.2 Summary – – – – – – – – –
5.3 Conclusion – – – – – – – – –
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background to the Study
Provision of potable water supply and sanitation is significant to people all over the World. In recognition of its relevance, WHO (1978) made potable water supply and sanitation component of Primary Health Care delivery System to achieve for the people of the World by the year 2000AD. WHO the same year, set basic human urban and rural water requirements at 60 lcpd per capita per day for all the people of the World. The WHO regards the provision of adequate potable water supply and access to sanitation as a basic right of every one.
Potable water supply in the study refers to that substance that is free from impurities, pathogenic organisms or other harmful elements which is without taste or odour, aesthetically appealing and socially acceptable for human consumption. Without adequate water supply, there cannot be sound sanitation. This is due to the fact that water is used for most sanitary practices such as washing, mopping floor and flushing of toilets. Sanitation in the study refers to the science and act of preventing diseases, promotion of health and management of waste so that waste does not constitute hazard to man and other creatures in an environment.
Nigeria being conscious of the benefits of sanitation signed the United Nations treaty on International Drinking Water and Sanitation Decade whose major objective was to ensure the provision of public potable water supply and sanitation to the people of the World between 1981 -1990. The history of water supply and sanitation programme dated back to 1966 under regional administration. The water supply and sanitation programme in the country as at that time was limited to few cities and towns (NWSSP, 2000)
Water Board was later established in the 36 states of Nigeria including Abia State.NWSSP, (2000) reveal that Nigeria, UNDP and other support Organizations gather hydrological data for the management of water supply and sanitation to Nigerians. Despite collaborative effort by government and non governmental organizations to provide potable water supply for the people; the issue of potable water supply and sanitation coverage in the country was still low. The trend was attributed to inadequate planning and faulty implementation of public water supply and sanitation in the State.
According to Ocholi (2006) inadequacy and unsatisfactory safe water supply and sanitation led to outbreak of Guinea worm and other water and sanitation related diseases in Oju Local Government area of Abia State. Adequacy in this context means that all the people in the project areas are provided with enough water supply, while satisfaction in the context of the present study refers to utility derive from adequate potable water supply and sanitation services. In order to combact epidemic arising from water supply and sanitation, WaterAid Organization was invited by the Department for International Development (DFID) to Abia State in 1996 to implement water supply and sanitation programmes in urban and rural areas of the State. Urban refers to a geographical area that has essential social services such as good network of roads, power supply, safe water supply and sanitation among others. Rural refers to areas with poverty linked characteristics which distinguish them from towns and cities. Ebisemiju (2006) defined WaterAid as International Non Governmental Charity Organization with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The Organization was formed in response to the International Drinking Water Supply Decade in 1981-1990. According to him, the branch of WaterAid International Organization in the country is referred to as WaterAid Nigeria. Contributing, Ocholi (2006) stated that WaterAid Nigeria mandates include provision of potable water supply and sanitation services to the people of the World including Abia State.
To achieve the set goal, WaterAid International Organization moved its office to Oju in 1997 and began pilot water and sanitation development process. WaterAid staff held advocacy meetings with the stakeholders which made the government and the host communities to support the projects; and the Abia State Water Supply and Sanitation Policy Draft of 2005. When this policy is signed into law, it will be a product of the National Water Supply and Sanitation Policy of 2000AD. WaterAid has also trained core and volunteer staff for the provision and management of water supply and sanitation projects in the State on resource management. According to Ocholi (2006) community management refers to being in charge of their water supply and sanitation services by selected representatives of the people.
There is another water supply and sanitation management committee at the Local Government which is the top most management committee at this level. The body comprised highly influential personalities including chiefs, religious and opinion leaders. At the state level, the body is known as advocacy committee, and comprised first class chiefs, religious leaders; representatives of the State Planning Commission, Civil Society and the Media Organizations. The group lobbied top government executives and WaterAid partners to support the service delivery of water supply and sanitation projects in the State. They assess and select vulnerable local government areas for sitting water supply and sanitation projects in Abia State.
Ishan (2008) stated that the Media Network and Civil Society Organization were incorporated into the water supply and sanitation committee so as strengthen the forces of lobbying for support and to foster monitoring mechanisms from the State to the grass root level in intervention Local Government Areas and the benefiting communities. According to her, the monitoring is expected to bring about greater success in the programme implementation after the leadership example of the incumbent Governor of the State.
WaterAid has facilitated the formation of Water and Environmental Sanitation Unit (WESU) in seven local government areas in the State. Each of the unit is staffed with a team of professionals from different background seconded to the units. They are known as WESU staff. The teams were retrained by WaterAid Nigeria to implement water supply and sanitation projects in the intervention local government areas and vulnerable communities with manpower support from the Organization and other Non Governmental Organizations.
WESU staff in collaboration with WaterAid Nigeria facilitates selection and training of Water and Environmental Sanitation Committee (WESCOM) resident in each of the project communities in the State. The committee members were selected by each community and trained to manage water supplies and sanitation in the project communities.
They also facilitate community selection of another group of volunteers resident in each project community. The groups were trained by WESU and after the training, they are called volunteer hygiene promoters. They educate people in each project community about the importance of having and using latrine and other sanitary systems, hygienic use of safe water and good sanitation practices as well as adequate refuse and sewage disposal. For example washing hands with water and soap or with water and ash after toilet, before breast feeding babies, before preparing, serving and after eating meals; cleaning of households, toiletries and at critical times by observing good hygiene and sanitation
Observation shows that WaterAid Nigeria has been sinking boreholes, shallow wells and rain water harvesters in urban and rural areas of the State. Those water supply systems are managed by the water supply and environmental sanitation committee in the project communities. The committee ensures hygiene and sanitation of water sources, even distribution of water to people by households, maintenance of law and order around public water sources, collection of water tariff, management of water supply and sanitation services in project communities. Water tariff refers to water charges. In-addition to those duties, they monitor and report on water supply and sanitation to their communities, local government authority and WaterAid Nigeria.
WaterAid Nigeria also facilitates community selection and retraining of resident mechanics at the local government area headquarters and selected community artisans re-trained as village level operation and maintenance personnel which repair and maintain broken hand pumps in project communities. WaterAid Nigeria in- cooperated the services of some private sector operators (PSO) in whole sale business mainly on water supply and sanitation. The PSOs were re-trained by WaterAid Nigeria in various types of business transactions so as to stay longer in business so that they promote hygiene and sanitation. . The group, educate people to adopt household latrines and to practice prompt refuse and sewage disposal. For instance, WaterAid Nigeria empower sanitation operators with seed stock which they use to transact water supply and sanitation materials and sell at affordable prizes to members of each project community under the supervision and monitoring by the local government staff so as to achieve effective service delivery.
The Organization has trained community artisans which build improved traditional pit latrines by the use of local materials which many families can now access sanitary facilities and services. According to Orji (2007) teaching people about sanitation and private sector participation are approaches aimed at modifying peoples behaviour regarding adoption of sanitation option of their choice from improved simple protected pit latrines to pour flush latrines and other sanitary practices such as use of refuse pits, sewerage connections and compositing.
Adequate sanitation promotes health and well being of the people. Commenting further Orji (2007) stated that community led total sanitation (CLTS) provided a new approach to sanitation. He maintained that CLTS involves facilitating a process of empowering rural communities to stop indiscriminate defecation by building and using latrines in households through participatory services.
Procter (1996) defined service as a system or organization that provides for basic public health needs. For instance, WaterAid Nigeria facilitates the provision of pipe borne water supply in public places for the supply of safe water to the people; including the less privileged in urban or rural communities. According to Allen and Graham (2002) service refers work or duty carried out for a person, organization or country especially when considered as contributory to the welfare of others. In the context of the present study, service delivery means work, duty or things provided for the welfare of others persons.
There are various services such as agriculture, education and industrial services but the study focused on health service delivery, precisely water supply and sanitation by WaterAid Nigeria. From observations, it appears certain factors constrain the service delivery by WaterAid Nigeria in Abia State. According to Hornby (2005) constrain refers to anything that limits or restricts a programme. Alaba and Alaba (2001) stated that poverty, level of income, level of education, age, location of facilities, facility characteristics, lack of fund, and lack of manpower constrained adequate provision and utilization of public health facilities in many Nigerian cities.
Tarimo and Creese (1990) discussing constraints stated that lack of community involvement and participation in health service delivery is a major constraint to health programme. They further stated that involving political leaders rather than the public in planning and implementation of health service delivery pose obstacle to the success of any programme. WHO (1992) identified the following constraints to water supply and sanitation programmes. They include: inadequate funding, inadequate trained personnel, insufficient health education efforts, logistic problems, lack of operation and maintenance, inadequate community involvement and participation, intermittent water supply, inadequate cost-recovery and inappropriate institutional frame work.
WHO (2000) stated that lack of fund, poverty, level of education, government policy, gender inequality, poor implementation strategies and natural disaster contributes to the problems hindering the provision of potable water supply and sanitation in urban or rural areas in developing countries including Nigeria; and perhaps Abia State where the study is being carried out. In the context of the study, constraint refers to any thing that constitutes obstacle to the service delivery, potable water supply and sanitation by WaterAid Nigeria. Contributing, Ifatimchin and Musa (2008) reported that lack of funds, institutional problems and logistic problems constrained the provision of safe water supply and sanitation
Every human effort is bound to face constraints supposedly experienced by WaterAid Nigeria on the way to achieve the target of facilitating communities to acquire self reliance potable water supply and sanitation by people all over the World including Abia State. However, optimists believed that beyond every obstacle, there abound prospects. Robinson and Davidson (2006) described prospect as the chances of success, improvement, or recovery. They further stated that prospect refers to opportunities for advancement and promotion of a programme, such as the service delivery of potable water supply and sanitation by WaterAid Nigeria. Lucas and Gilles (2006) maintained that to guarantee safe water supply and sanitation to all the people is costly, such that government alone can not afford it for all the people. In this connection they suggested private sector participation in the service delivery of safe water supply and sanitation.
Statement of the Problem
WHO (1978) stated that the provision of safe water supply and adequate sanitation is a basic right of every individual all over the world. WHO set basic human urban and rural water requirement at least 60 lcpd and 30 lcpd respectively per capita per day and access to sanitation defined as the number of people that have adequate means of sanitary disposal. In recognition of the relevance of potable water and sanitation to human health, WHO the same year made water supply and sanitation a component of Primary Health Care delivery system to achieve for the people of the World by the year 2000 AD.
In-spite of joint efforts, being made by government and non-Governmental Organizations in providing people with safe water supply and sanitation all over the World, what actually obtain in most countries of the World is persistent water and sanitation crisis. This situation is different from what is obtainable as above. According to Park (2007;Wikipedia,2008) about six billion people inhabit the Earth in the year 2000 and over one billion of them have no access to safe water supply, while two billion six hundred people lack access to adequate sanitation. Okafor (1998) reported that many Nigerian communities obtain their drinking water from streams and unprotected wells. Kaliel(2000)stated that a lot of Nigerians had continued to face acute shortage of safe water supply and sanitation services. Ezedum (2002) revealed that many rural Nigerians live in abject poverty which manifest in poor housing, lack of safe water supply and sanitation resulting in deadly but preventable diseases. According to Ezedum, the problem of water supply and sanitation cut across the entire developing World, including Nigeria.
Observation shows that people in Abia State fetch their drinking water from contaminated water sources which expose the people to incidence of water and sanitation related diseases and death. According to Ocholi (2006), epidemic of guinea worm and other water and sanitation related diseases in Oju Local Government Area of Abia State made DFID to invite WaterAid International Organization to Abia State in 1996; to provide potable water supply and sanitation to the people of the State. Since then and to the best knowledge of the researcher, it appears as if the service delivery of potable water supply and sanitation by WaterAid Nigeria in Abia State has never been assessed. Hence the researcher wants to investigate how the services are rendered.
Research Objectives
- To determine the difference between semi-urban and rural areas in the provision of public potable water supply and sanitation by WaterAid in Umuaihia, Abia State.
- To find out the difference in the constraints to the provision of public potable water supply and sanitation service delivery by WaterAid in Umuaihia, Abia State
- To examine the difference in the prospect of public potable wqater supply and sanitation by WaterAid in Umuaihia, Abia State.
Research Hypothesis
The following hypotheses have been formulated to guide the sturdy. Each hypothesis was tested at 0.5level of significance.
- There is no statistically significant difference between semi-urban and rural areas in the provision of public potable water supply and sanitation service delivery by WaterAid Nigeria in Umuaihia, Abia State.
- There is no statistically significant difference in the constraints to the provision of public potable water supply and sanitation service delivery by WaterAid Nigeria between semiurban and rural areas in Umuaihia, Abia State.
- There is no statistically significant difference in the prospect of public potable water supply and sanitation service delivery by WaterAid Nigeria between semi-urban and rural setting in Umuaihia, Abia State.
Significance of the Study
The study provided data on the adequacy of potable water supply by WaterAid Nigeria in
Abia State. Such data will be useful to WaterAid State programme manager and the State Ministry of Water Resources and Environment They will use such data to plan for personnel, methods and materials which will enhance the provision of adequate potable water supply to all the benefiting communities.
The study provided data on the adequacy of refuse disposal facilitated by WaterAid Nigeria in the benefiting communities. Such data will be used by WaterAid programme managers and the State Environmental Protection Agency in planning for proper management of refuse.
The study provided data on the adequacy of sewage disposal facilitated by WaterAid Nigeria among the benefiting communities. Such data will be useful to the State Programme Manager and the decision making bodies regarding sewage disposal among the benefiting communities.
The study provided data, on the level of the beneficiaries” satisfaction with potable water supply and sanitation by WaterAid Nigeria in the benefiting communities; Such data will be useful to the State WaterAid programme manager and Partner Organizations to strategize ways to achieve high level results in the provision of potable water supply and sanitation to the benefiting communities. They can utilize the information to judge the beneficiaries” satisfaction states with the service delivery.
The study generated data about the beneficiaries feeling and satisfaction with the refuse disposal facilitated by WaterAid Nigeria among the benefiting communities. The data can be utilized by the Organization to know the level of the Organizations” commitment to the provision of safe water supply and sanitation with regard to the beneficiaries” satisfaction especially access to safe excreta disposal. Such data will be useful to programme managers and Abia State Environmental Protection Agency to ensure that refuse disposal succeeds.
The study provided data on the level of the beneficiaries” satisfaction with sewage disposal by WaterAid Nigeria in the benefiting communities; The data will be useful to the water board and the State environmental protection agency to identify areas for construction and repair of sewage systems to ease the problem of sewage.
The study generated data on the state of collection and storage bins in terms of adequacy and quality of refuse disposal among the benefiting communities in the State. Such data will guide the organization and stakeholders of water supply and sanitation to facilitate the procurement of quality and adequate quantity of collection and storage bins (receptacles) needed by residents in the area of the study.
The study generated data on type and adequacy of vehicles used to transport refuse. Such data will be useful to health educators and the benefiting communities. The data will serve as base and equip health educators with the right information with which to embark on health education intervention programme that will expose health risks faced by refuse vehicle drivers and the public. Benefiting communities that do not have appropriate conveyance vehicles will appreciate the need to acquire one to prevent exposure and littering of refuse to disease agents thereby controlling disease transmission.
The study provided data on the methods utilized by the benefiting communities to treat waste and disposal of waste materials especially at the final refuse disposal sites, and to provide evidence based information which can be utilized by WaterAid Nigeria and stakeholders for the revision of treatment pattern including methods of refuse disposal.
The study provided data on constraints to the service delivery by WaterAid Nigeria in the State. Such data will benefit WaterAid programme managers and the programme coordinators. The data will help programme managers and coordinators to strategize ways of over coming constraints to the service delivery of potable water supply and sanitation
The study generated data on ways of improving the service delivery in the State. Such data will benefit WaterAid programme managers and project communities. The data will help the programme managers to identify strategies for improving the service delivery. Project communities will also benefit from improved water supply and sanitation services extended to their households; and reduction in water and sanitation related diseases.
Scope of the Study
The study is delimited to Umuaihia local government areas of Abia State where WaterAid assisted projects are located. The study is specifically limited to the provision of water supply and sanitation by WaterAid Nigeria in Abia State, constraints and prospects.
The scope of the study is concerned with service delivery, potable water supply and sanitation services including refuse and sewage disposal in the area. Factors such as adequacy and satisfaction of the services were examined.
