Access to safe and sustainable domestic water And sanitation services in emerging slums in Kenya;
Abstract
Water and sanitation are key aspects of human development. For poor people, access to
water and sanitation is a pre-requisite to achieving a minimum standard of health and
undertaking productive activities. Although there is more than enough water in the world
to meet domestic, agricultural and industrial needs, some 1.1 billion people in developing
countries have inadequate access to water, and 2.6 billion lack basic sanitation.
An adequate supply of clean water and proper sanitation would mean that poor
households do not pay as much as they do for the little water they use. There would be a
reduction in, not only morbidity and mortality caused by water-borne diseases, but also
individual health care costs and lost earnings related to poor health, thus reducing poverty
and malnutrition levels. It would also reduce gender inequality and empower women who
often spend a lot of time walking long distances and waiting in queues to fetch water.
The level of access to safe water and sanitation is determined by a number of factors,
among them; type of water source/sanitation facility, distance to the water
source/sanitation facility, poverty and w~ter pricing policies.
The prOVIsIOn of water and sanitation services falls within the Service Delivery
Framework. Currently, Kenya is implementing the Transaction-Intensive Services
Framework, a Down-Up Approach formulated by the World Bank. It empowers citizens
to demand services rather than being passive service consumers. If well implemented,
this framework would ensure supply of adequate water and safe sanitation to all and more
specifically to low-income populations.
This household survey, which focused on Majengo, a low income area of Narok Town,
was explorative in nature. Its main aim was to assess the level of access to safe water and
sanitation and the prevalence of water-borne diseases.
Sponsorhip
The University of NairobiPublisher
Department of Sociology
Subject
Access to safe and sustainable domestic water And sanitation servicesEmerging slums in Kenya