Water Scarcity In Sub Saharan Africa Essay

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Water is a resource that people use everyday, for everything. Whether it is brushing one’s teeth, drinking a glass of water, or watering one’s garden, they are using water to do so. In America, water is thought of as a commodity, but in Africa, water is a basic human right.Much of where the population density resides in Sub-Saharan Africa, there the same places where people need clean and decontaminated water the most. The question posed, “How can we further preserve and provide a freshwater supply for sustainable living in Sub-Saharan Africa?” serves as the base for the research put into this topic. Many of the water scarcity problems in Sub-Saharan Africa can be solved with the right motivation, knowledge, and funds. With those things, solar …show more content…

It is the mathematical ratio of the human consumption of water to the water availability (Schulte). The causes of this water scarcity come from the fact that there is not enough infrastructure to help structure sanitation methods to purify the water (Tatlock). Many of the countries that are plagued by water scarcity do not have centralized governments to build up sanitation programs. Pollution is also a major factor in the toxicity of the water ("Water Scarcity"). Harmful bacteria in human waste is a major way that the water is polluted, and because many people in Africa do not have access to toilets, or other sanitation aids, their waste is often put into the ground where it is soaked up by the groundwater ("Water Scarcity"). When the wells then bring up that polluted water, the people are drinking that same harmful bacteria that has grown ("Water Scarcity"). Population growth also is one of the causes of water scarcity, as the larger the population grows, there is more of a demand for water. This growing need for water as the population grows puts more stress on the already limited water supply, and this leads to more malnourished, dehydrated, and sickly

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