- African countries lag in terms of clean water and sanitation for all investments.
- The World Bank warns that failure to achieve SDG 6 will affect the achievement of most other goals.
- Tanzania was recognized for achievements of the Water Sector Development Program (WSDP) phase three.
Africa is not on track to achieve Sustainable Development Goal Six (SDG 6), which advocates Clean Water and Sanitation for all, yet its achievement would lead to the realization of multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The assertion was made by the African Development Bank Group, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina who noted that failure to achieve SDG 6 will significantly impact the elimination of poverty (SDG 1), zero hunger (SDG 2), good health and well-being (SDG 3), gender equality (SDG 5), clean energy (SDG 7) and decent work and economic growth (SDG 8) as well.
He said that while there are strong relationships between water security and economic growth, investments in the water sector remain minimal. “Water security underpins sustainable development and plays a crucial role in achieving the 2030 Agenda,” he noted while deciphering the fact that individual countries are still lagging behind in their investment in the development of water resources.
Like these sentiments, the UN holds that; “achieving SDG 6, ensuring water and sanitation for all, is essential for progress on all other SDGs, and conversely, the achievement of SDG 6 depends on the overall progress of the entire Africa 2030 Agenda.”
Even though three out of four jobs in the global workforce are highly dependent upon access to water and water-related services, Africa, and the world at large, is far from reaching SDG 6, the UN warns.
Water is necessary for all economic sectors, especially agriculture, food production, energy, transport, industry, and tourism.
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Tanzania water access and security
As of 2021, access to basic drinking water services in Tanzania was at 74 percent, household sanitation at 72 percent, and access to hand-washing was 41.5 percent, the World Bank reports.
“Although some progress has been made over the years, the Government of Tanzania still needs to close quite a large gap,” the Bank said in its Tanzania Economic Update: Universal Access to Water and Sanitation Could Transform Social and Economic Development report.
Since its Water Sector Development Program (WSDP) got underway, Tanzania has made significant progress in improving access to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services. Against a backdrop of low coverage and slow progress in the sector, the country has renewed its commitment to expanding access for its population with an ambitious goal to achieve SDG 6.
The National Panel Survey (NPS) 2020/2021, released in January 2023, shows that four in every 10 households have gained access to improved sanitation. Over half the population now has access to clean water in the rainy season and two-thirds during the dry seasons.
However, the World Bank says that more than nine percent of Tanzania’s population of about 63.5 million continues to practice open defecation, which brings serious health risks. At the same time, rural areas generally lag behind urban centers in all dimensions of access to WASH services.
In this regard, the 18th Tanzania Economic Update Clean Water, Bright Future: The Transformative Impact of Investing in WASH, just published by the World Bank, urges the country to push to deliver the goals of its third, and by far more ambitious WSDP phase 3 (2022–2026), whose financing requirements are estimated at $6.5 billion.
“The devastating consequences of inadequate access, versus the benefits gained, make such an investment highly cost-effective,” said Nathan Belete, the World Bank’s Country Director in Tanzania.
“Achieving WASH goals can support the jobs agenda while mitigating the adverse effects poor water and sanitation have on workforce productivity…and they’re crucial for Tanzania to achieve its objectives for inclusive growth and property reduction,” Belete said.
Failing water management in Africa
According to the AfDB, across Africa, water is unevenly distributed, with more than half of water resources concentrated in Central Africa and less than three percent in North Africa. This calls for comprehensive strategies to manage the available water resources for all to benefit.
The African continent has 63 international transboundary river basins, which cover about 64 percent of the region’s land area and account for 93 percent of its total surface water.
However, Dr. Adesina noted that only 5 percent of water resources are exploited. What’s more, just less than 5 percent of cultivated land is being irrigated, and worse still, only 10 percent of hydroelectricity potential is utilized despite the fact that electricity is pivotal to achieving Africa’s sought-after industrialization.
Sadly enough, the AfDB reports that 72 percent of Africa lacks access to basic sanitation services, and only 58 percent of the African population has access to safely managed drinking water services. The situation worsens in Sub-Saharan Africa, where only 27 per cent can access safely managed drinking water.
“As a result, there is a high incidence of disease that reduces the vitality and overall economic productivity of Africa,” Dr. Adesina decried.
He also pointed out that the situation is further exasperated by the intensification of environmental degradation, climate change, population growth, and rapid urbanization. All these factors pose considerable challenges to water security on the continent.
“Already, cities are reaching out to more distant sources of water supply and relocating industries close to water sources,” he cautioned.
Dr. Adesina revealed that African countries have also failed to match the growing demand for water with adequate investments, as they invest only 0.5 per cent of their gross domestic product in the water sector.
According to the AfDB president, this minute financial commitment leaves an annual investment gap of $43-56 billion. Not only is Africa not investing in water, but even where investment has already been made, there is weak water sector governance across most African countries.
It has been three years since the AfDB approved a new water policy in 2021. The basic objective was to enhance Africa’s water security and transform its water assets to foster sustainable, green, and inclusive socio-economic growth and development.
“The policy identifies measures for strengthening the knowledge base on water risks and addressing the technical, financing and governance challenges to achieving water security,” Dr. Adesina explained.
According to President Dr. Adesina, the goal of the water strategy is to ensure increased water security across the continent and, with it, foster sustainable, green, and inclusive socio-economic growth and development.
He detailed that the AfDB Water Strategy is based on four strategic objectives that recognize the vital resource’s importance across multiple dimensions. The first is achieving integrated and sustainable water resources management, and the second is strengthening the delivery of water supply, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services to become sustainable, resilient, and inclusive.
Thirdly, increasing the availability of sustainable water resources for food production and improved nutrition includes improved agricultural water management and investments in fisheries and their supporting ecosystems.
Finally, increasing sustainable development of water for energy in terms of hydropower potential, as stipulated in the New Deal for Africa Strategy, is a strategy to address Africa’s energy challenges and achieve universal access to electricity.
