scholarly journals Does self-reported water collection time differ from observed water collection time? Evidence from the Upper West Region of Ghana

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 357-365
Author(s):  
Alfred Dongzagla ◽  
Abraham Marshall Nunbogu ◽  
Nicholas Fielmua

Abstract Water collection time is a key indicator in tracking access to drinking water. Over the years, water surveillance agencies have relied on water collectors for information on water collection time to measure progress of water supply. However, emerging evidence shows that water collection times reported by water collectors in developing countries are often imprecise. To contribute to knowledge about the validity or otherwise of self-reported water collection times, this study explored the association between self-reported water collection times and observed water collection times in the Upper West Region of Ghana. Data on water collection times were gathered from 412 water collectors in Daffiama-Issa-Bussie District and Lawra Municipality, first through interviews, and second by observation. From the results, self-reported water collection times were significantly (P < 0.01) lower than observed water collection times. The average round-trip water collection time reported by water collectors (32 minutes) was 8 minutes lower than observed water collection times (40 minutes). This implies that existing statistics on basic water coverage that are largely based on self-reported water collection times are overestimated. Going forward, we call on water surveillance agencies to collect data on water collection times through observation. This article has been made Open Access thanks to the generous support of a global network of libraries as part of the Knowledge Unlatched Select initiative.

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 204-218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ampai Soros ◽  
James E. Amburgey ◽  
Christine E. Stauber ◽  
Mark D. Sobsey ◽  
Lisa M. Casanova

Abstract Turbidity reduction by coagulation-flocculation in drinking water reduces microbes and organic matter, increasing effectiveness of downstream treatment. Chitosan is a promising household water coagulant, but needs parameters for use. This study tested the effects of chitosan dose, molecular weight (MW), degree of deacetylation (DD), and functional groups on bentonite and kaolinite turbidity reduction in model household drinking water. Higher MW or DD produced greater reductions. Highest reductions were at doses 1 and 3 mg/L by MW >50,000 or >70% DD (residual turbidity <5 NTU). Higher doses did not necessarily continually increase reduction. For functional groups, 3 mg/L produced the highest reductions by lactate, acetate, and HCl, and lower reductions of kaolinite than bentonite. Doses where the point of zero charge was observed clustered around 3 mg/L. Chitosan reduced clay turbidity in water; effectiveness was influenced by dose, clay type, MW, DD, and functional groups. Reduction did not necessarily increase with MW. Bentonite had a broader effective dose range and higher reduction at the optimal dose than kaolinite. Chitosans with and without functional groups performed similarly. The best of the studied doses was 3 mg/L. Chitosans are promising for turbidity reduction in low-resource settings if combined with sedimentation and/or filtration. This article has been made Open Access thanks to the generous support of a global network of libraries as part of the Knowledge Unlatched Select initiative.


2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 225-236
Author(s):  
Ifiok P. Udofia ◽  
Elizabeth O. Oloruntoba

Abstract There is paucity of information on accessibility to potable water in homes for the disabled in Nigeria. This study investigated access to potable water among physically challenged people in three homes for the disabled in Ibadan. Sixty-four physically challenged persons living at the Cheshire Home (CH), Sekinat Adekola (SAC) and Lawal Centre (LC) were surveyed. Quantity of Drinking Water (QDW) received daily was compared to the WHO minimum requirement of 2.5 litres/head/day. Drinking water samples were analysed for total coliform (TCC) and Escherichia coli counts (ECC). Respondents' ages were 22.4 ± 5.1 years in CH, 23.6 ± 7.4 years in SAC and 13.8 ± 5.6 years in LC. The QDW received was 5.3 ± 1.5 litres/head/day in CH, 4.5 ± 0.5 litres/head/day in SAC and 2.8 ± 0.8 litres/head/day in LC. Thirty-seven percent in CH, 55.0% in SAC and 22.0% in LC were very satisfied with QDW received. CH water had lower TCC (2.0 ± 0.6 cfu/100 mL) compared to SAC (378 ± 169.3 cfu/100 mL) and LC (357.3 ± 174.3 cfu/100 mL). Only LC water showed an ECC of 1.0 ± 0.4 cfu/100 mL. Not all individuals experienced adequate access within the homes. Water quality was poor across the homes and treatment was inadequate. Constant potable water is required for the well-being of disabled people in these homes. This article has been made Open Access thanks to the generous support of a global network of libraries as part of the Knowledge Unlatched Select initiative.


2018 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 661-666 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Cassivi ◽  
R. Johnston ◽  
E. O. D. Waygood ◽  
C. C. Dorea

Abstract Despite the reported achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) with respect to drinking water, lack of access to water remains widespread worldwide. The indicator used there to measure access to water in the MDGs refers to the use of an improved water source. However, the amount of time spent in collecting water is high in countries where access to drinking water supplies located on premises is not common. 26.3% of the world's population did not have such access in 2015. Thus the need to travel to a water point, possibly queue, fill water containers, and carry them home is prevalent. The amount of time and effort used in water collection can be considerable, and household surveys increasingly provide data on collection time. This study aims to demonstrate the effect of adding a 30-minute collection time component to monitor access to drinking water. This study draws on household surveys from 17 countries to highlight the widespread burden of fetching water and its significant impact on estimates of coverage. The proportion of the population with access decreased by 13% on average for these 17 countries when collection time was added as a consideration.


2012 ◽  
pp. 4-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. North ◽  
J. Wallis ◽  
S. Webb ◽  
B. Weingast

The paper presents a summary of the forthcoming book by the authors and discusses the sample study of the 9 developing countries. While admitting the non-linearity of economic development they claim that the developing countries make a transition from the limited access orders (where the coalition of powerful elite groups plays a major role, that is based on personal connections and hampers free political and economic competition) to the open access orders with democratic government and efficient decentralized economic system. The major conclusion of this article is that what the limited access societies should do is not simply introducing open access institutions, but reorganizing the incentives of the elites so that to limit violence, provide economic and political stability and make a gradual transition to the open access order beneficial for the elites.


Mousaion ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 25-54
Author(s):  
Wanyenda Leonard Chilimo

 There is scant research-based evidence on the development and adoption of open access (OA) and institutional repositories (IRs) in Africa, and in Kenya in particular. This article reports on a study that attempted to fill that gap and provide feedback on the various OA projects and advocacy work currently underway in universities and research institutions in Kenya and in other developing countries. The article presents the findings of a descriptive study that set out to evaluate the current state of IRs in Kenya. Webometric approaches and interviews with IR managers were used to collect the data for the study. The findings showed that Kenya has made some progress in adopting OA with a total of 12 IRs currently listed in the Directory of Open Access Repositories (OpenDOAR) and five mandatory self-archiving policies listed in the Registry of Open Access Repositories Mandatory Archiving Policies (ROARMAP). Most of the IRs are owned by universities where theses and dissertations constitute the majority of the content type followed by journal articles. The results on the usage and impact of materials deposited in Kenyan IRs indicated that the most viewed publications in the repositories also received citations in Google Scholar, thereby signifying their impact and importance. The results also showed that there was a considerable interest in Swahili language publications among users of the repositories in Kenya.


1991 ◽  
Vol 23 (1-3) ◽  
pp. 201-209 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Kreisel

Water quality can affect human health in various ways: through breeding of vectors, presence of pathogenic protozoa, helminths, bacteria and viruses, or through inorganic and organic chemicals. While traditional concern has been with pathogens and gastro-intestinal diseases, chemical pollutants in drinking-water supplies have in many instances reached proportions which affect human health, especially in cases of chronic exposure. Treatment of drinking-water, often grossly inadequate in developing countries, is the last barrier of health protection, but control at source is more effective for pollution control. Several WHO programmes of the International Drinking-Water Supply and Sanitation Decade have stimulated awareness of the importance of water quality in public water supplies. Three main streams have been followed during the eighties: guidelines for drinking-water quality, guidelines for wastewater reuse and the monitoring of freshwater quality. Following massive investments in the community water supply sector to provide people with adequate quantities of drinking-water, it becomes more and more important to also guarantee minimum quality standards. This has been recognized by many water and health authorities in developing countries and, as a result, WHO cooperates with many of them in establishing water quality laboratories and pollution control programmes.


2006 ◽  
Vol 53 (6) ◽  
pp. 75-82
Author(s):  
S. Lee ◽  
D. Cha ◽  
H. Park

In developing countries, the PPP (Public–Private–Partnerships) programs have been unsatisfied during the last decade. This study analyzed one of the main causes is low quality of the system. That is, no matter what supports developing countries may get through PPP, reforming water systems can be hardly successful without appropriate system quality. With this background, this study introduces service standards of ISO/TC 224 as an option to improve system quality of developing countries. To analyze its effects, system dynamic modeling was conducted. The results indicated that service standards, working with the PPP programs, can benefit all the stakeholders involved in the water systems in developing countries. Also this indicates further that this approach with service standards deserves more detailed study for improving the ailing water systems in developing countries.


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